A Mycle Schneider Consulting Project
Paris, London, September 2018

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 |2The World Nuclear Industry
Status Report 2019
Foreword by

Diana Ürge-Vorsatz
Central European University (CEU)
Budapest, Hungary

By

Mycle Schneider

Antony Froggatt

Independent Consultant, Paris, France

Independent Consultant, London, U.K.

Project Coordinator and Lead Author

Lead Author

With

Julie Hazemann

Christian von Hirschhausen

Director of EnerWebWatch, Paris, France

Professor, Workgroup for Economic andInfrastructure Policy, Berlin University ofTechnology (TU Berlin), Germany

Documentary Research, Modelling and Datavisualization

Tadahiro Katsuta
Professor, School of Law, Meiji University,
Tokyo, Japan
Contributing Author

Amory B. Lovins
Co-Founder and Chairman Emeritus, Rocky
Mountain Institute, Snowmass, Colorado, U.S.

Contributing Author

Ben Wealer
Research Associate, Workgroup for Economic
and Infrastructure Policy, Berlin University ofTechnology (TU Berlin), Germany
Contributing Author

Contributing Author

Agnès Stienne

M.V. Ramana

Artist, Graphic Designer, Cartographer,
Le Mans, France

Simons Chair in Disarmament, Global and Human
Security with the Liu Institute for Global Issues
at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver,
CanadaContributing Author

Graphic Design & Layout

Friedhelm Meinass
Visual Artist, Painter, Rodgau, Germany
Cover-page Design, Painting and Layout

Paris, Budapest, September 2019 © A Mycle Schneider Consulting ProjectWo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 |3ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
As for so many years now, the project coordinator wishes to thank Antony Froggatt for his conceptual input,
his contributions on many levels and his friendship.
At the core of the World Nuclear Industry Status Report (WNISR) is its database, designed and maintainedby data manager and information engineer Julie Hazemann, who also develops most of the roughs for thegraphical illustrations. She expanded her contribution significantly this year with the organization of thedraft report and multi-level proofing. As ever, no WNISR without her. Thanks so much.
The WNISR project can solidly count on the regular, reliable, professional and insightful contributions from
M.V. Ramana, Tadahiro Katsuta, Christian von Hirschhausen and Ben Wealer. Many thanks to all of you.
WNISR2019 has greatly profited from a new contributor with a familiar name, Amory B. Lovins. We are very
grateful for his excellent contribution. A particular thank you to Diana Ürge-Vorsatz for her generous andto-the-point Foreword.
Many other people have contributed pieces of work to make this project possible and to bring it to thecurrent standard. In particular Shaun Burnie, whose multiple contributions have been invaluable and highly
appreciated. Thank you also to Caroline Peachey, Nuclear Engineering International, for providing the loadfactor figures quoted throughout the report.
Artist and graphic designer Agnès Stienne created the redesigned layout in 2017 and continues to improve ourgraphic illustrations that get a lot of praise around the world. Thank you. Nina Schneider put her excellent
proof-reading and production skills to work again. Thank you.
A big thank-you to Arnaud Martin for his innovative, original and reliable work on the website
www.WorldNuclearReport.org, dedicated to the WNISR.
We owe the idea, design, original painting and realization of the artwork for the cover to Friedhelm Meinass,renowned German painter. True, he already did (LP) covers before, in the 1970s, for The Byrds,
Mahalia Jackson, Nina Hagen and the likes. Thanks so much for this exceptional contribution.
This work has greatly benefitted from additional proofreading by Amory B. Lovins, Walt Patterson and Allan
Jones, partial proof-reading, editing suggestions or comments by Ada Amon, Jan Haverkamp, Iryna Holovko,
Daul Jang, Benedek Javor, KANG Junjie, Lutz Mez, Andras Perger, Steve Thomas and others. Thank you all.
The authors wish to thank in particular Rebecca Harms, Matthew McKinzie, Tanja Gaudian,Rainer Griesshammer, Andrea Droste, Jutta Paulus and Nils Epprecht for their enthusiastic and lastingsupport of this project.
And everybody involved is grateful to the MacArthur Foundation, Natural Resources Defense Council,
Heinrich Böll Foundation France, the Greens‑EFA Group in the European Parliament, Elektrizitätswerke
Schönau, Foundation Zukunftserbe and the Swiss Renewable Energy Foundation for their generous support.
NOTE
This report contains a very large amount of factual and numerical data. While we do our utmost to verify anddouble-check, nobody is perfect. The authors are always grateful for corrections and suggested improvements.
LEAD AUTHORS’ CONTACT INFORMATION
Mycle Schneider
45, Allée des deux cèdres
91210 Draveil (Paris) France
Ph: +33-1-69 83 23 79
E: mycle@WorldNuclearReport.org

Antony Froggatt
53a Neville Road London N16 8SW
United Kingdom
Ph: +44-79 68 80 52 99
E: antony@froggatt.net

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 |4TABLE OF CONTENTSACKNOWLEDGMENTS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 3

FOREWORD

13

KEY INSIGHTS

15

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

16

Reactor Startups & Closures .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .16Operation & Construction Data  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 17
Construction Starts & New-Build Issues .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .18Potential Newcomer Countries - Program Delays & Cancellations  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .18Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .19Focus Countries – Widespread Extended Outages  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 20
Fukushima Status Report .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 21
Decommissioning Status Report – Soaring Costs  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  22
Nuclear Power vs. Renewable Energy Deployment  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 23
Climate Change and Nuclear Power  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 24

INTRODUCTION

26

GENERAL OVERVIEW WORLDWIDE

29

THE HISTORIC EXPANSION OF NUCLEAR POWER – FORECASTING VS. REALITY .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 29
PRODUCTION AND ROLE OF NUCLEAR POWER  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 31
OPERATION, POWER GENERATION, AGE DISTRIBUTION .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 34
OVERVIEW OF CURRENT NEW-BUILD  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 38
CONSTRUCTION TIMES  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 40
Construction Times of Reactors Currently Under Construction .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  40
Construction Times of Past and Currently Operating Reactors  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  40
CONSTRUCTION STARTS AND CANCELLATIONS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 43
OPERATING AGE .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  46
LIFETIME PROJECTIONS .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  49

FOCUS COUNTRIES52

BELGIUM FOCUS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  52
Hydrogen Crack Indications and Legal Issues .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  54
Serious Flaws in Reinforced Concrete  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .55Performance Assessment  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 56
Lifetime Extensions = Extended Outages? .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  57

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 |5Compliance Issue Solved  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  58
CHINA FOCUS .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 59
FINLAND FOCUS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 62
Olkiluoto-3 (OL3)  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 63
Hanhikivi-1 .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  67
FRANCE FOCUS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 68
Multi Annual Energy Plan and The Energy Bill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
French Nuclear Power Performance Remains Poor .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  69
Power Trade .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  70
Nuclear Unavailability Review 2018 .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 71
The Ongoing Flamanville-3 EPR Saga .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  74
Other Ongoing Quality Issues  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  76
Ongoing Fallout from Creusot Forge Affair .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  76
The Ongoing Tricastin Canal Embankment Case .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  77
GERMANY FOCUS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 78
JAPAN FOCUS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 81
Reactor Closures .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  83
Restart Prospects  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 88
Financing Meltdowns  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  95
Multiple Reactor Shutdowns from Spring 2020? .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  95
SOUTH KOREA FOCUS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 97
Reactor Startup  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 99
New Reactor Construction .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .100
Energy Policy Under Attack  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  101Containment Liner Plate Corrosion  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 102
Hanbit Power Surges  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 103
TAIWAN FOCUS .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  104Reactor Closures .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 106
Referendum  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 106
No Future for Lungmen?  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 107
UNITED KINGDOM FOCUS .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  109Hinkley Point C Construction Start – Not That Concrete? .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  112Other U.K. New-Build Projects .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  114A New Funding Model for Nuclear? .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  116

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 |6Renewables Kicking In .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  117Plutonium – From Long-Term Resource Dream to Endless Liability  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  118UNITED STATES FOCUS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  119Reactor Closures .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  122New Reactor Construction .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 126
Securing Subsidies to Prevent Closures  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  132

FUKUSHIMA STATUS REPORT143

INTRODUCTION  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 143
ONSITE CHALLENGES .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  143Current Status Reactors  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 143
Contaminated Water Management .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 145
Worker Exposure .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 147
OFFSITE CHALLENGES  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  149Current Status of Evacuation  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 149
Radiation Exposure and Health Effects  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 153
Food Contamination .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 154
Decontamination,  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 155
CONCLUSION ON FUKUSHIMA STATUS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  156

DECOMMISSIONING STATUS REPORT 2019

157

INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  157Decommissioning Worldwide  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  157Overview of Reactors with Completed Decommissioning  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  158ELEMENTS OF NATIONAL DECOMMISSIONING POLICIES  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  159CASE STUDIES NORTH AMERICA, EUROPE, AND ASIA .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  159CASE STUDIES: WESTERN EUROPE, CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE, AND ASIA .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 162
Spain  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 162
Italy  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 165
Lithuania .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 168
Russia .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 170
South Korea .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  172CONCLUSION ON REACTOR DECOMMISSIONING  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  173

POTENTIAL NEWCOMER COUNTRIES175

UNDER CONSTRUCTION .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  176Bangladesh  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 176

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 |7Belarus .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 178
Turkey  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 181
United Arab Emirates  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  185
“CONTRACTS SIGNED” .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  188Lithuania  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 188
Poland  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 188
Vietnam  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 190“COMMITTED PLANS”  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 191
Egypt  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  191Jordan  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 192“WELL DEVELOPED PLANS”  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 193
Indonesia  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 193
Kazakhstan  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 194
Saudi Arabia .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 195
Thailand  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 197
Uzbekistan .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 197
CONCLUSION ON POTENTIAL NEWCOMER COUNTRIES .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  199

SMALL MODULAR REACTORS

200

ARGENTINA  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 200
CANADA  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 200
CHINA  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  202INDIA .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 204
RUSSIA .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 204
SOUTH KOREA  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 206
UNITED KINGDOM  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 206
UNITED STATES .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  207CONCLUSION ON SMRs  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 209

NUCLEAR POWER VS. RENEWABLE ENERGY DEPLOYMENT210

INTRODUCTION  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 210
INVESTMENT  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 211
TECHNOLOGY COSTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
INSTALLED CAPACITY AND ELECTRICITY GENERATION  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 214
STATUS AND TRENDS IN CHINA, THE EU, INDIA, AND THE UNITED STATES  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 217
CONCLUSION ON NUCLEAR POWER VS. RENEWABLE ENERGY  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 226

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

CLIMATE CHANGE AND NUCLEAR POWER

|8

228

THE STAKES  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  228NUCLEAR POWER DISPLACES OTHER CLIMATE SOLUTIONS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  230NON-NUCLEAR OPTIONS SAVE MORE CARBON PER DOLLAR  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 232
New-build Costs  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 232
Non-Economic Arguments for Nuclear Need . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235
Costs of Lifetime-Extended Nuclear Plants  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 238
Operating Costs of Existing Nuclear Plants  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 238
Climate Implications of Substantial Nuclear Operating Costs .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 245
PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS FOR CLIMATE-EFFECTIVENESS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  247Substitution for Existing Nuclear Plants: 5 Case Studies from the U.S. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
NON-NUCLEAR OPTIONS SAVE MORE CARBON PER YEAR  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 250
IS NUCLEAR POWER A CLIMATE IMPERATIVE? .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  253CONCLUSION ON CLIMATE CHANGE AND NUCLEAR POWER  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 256

ANNEXES

257

ANNEX 1 OVERVIEW BY REGION AND COUNTRY

258

AFRICA .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  258South Africa .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 258
THE AMERICAS .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 260
Argentina  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 260
Brazil  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 262
Canada .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 263
Mexico  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 265
United States  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .266
ASIA AND MIDDLE EAST  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 266
China  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .266
India  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 266
Iran  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .269
Pakistan  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .269
South Korea .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .270
Taiwan .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 270
EUROPEAN UNION (EU28) .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  270WESTERN EUROPE .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  273Belgium  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 273

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 |9Finland  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 273
France  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 273
Germany .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 273
The Netherlands  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 273
Spain  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 275
Sweden .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 278
Switzerland  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 280
CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  283Bulgaria  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 283
Czech Republic  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .284
Hungary .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 287
Romania  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .289
Slovakia  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 291
Slovenia  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 293
FORMER SOVIET UNION  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  294Armenia  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 294
Russia .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 295
Ukraine .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .299

ANNEX 2 – STATUS OF CHINESE NUCLEAR FLEET302

ANNEX 3 – STATUS OF JAPANESE NUCLEAR FLEET304

ANNEX 4 – ABOUT THE AUTHORS

306

ANNEX 5 – ABBREVIATIONS310

ANNEX 6 - STATUS OF NUCLEAR POWER IN THE WORLD

318

ANNEX 7 - NUCLEAR REACTORS IN THE WORLD “UNDER CONSTRUCTION”

319

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 10

TABLE OF FIGURES
Figure 1 | National Nuclear Power Program Startup and Phase-out  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 29
Figure 2 | Forecasted and Real Expansion of Nuclear Capacity in the World .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 30
Figure 3 | Nuclear Electricity Generation in the World... and China  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 32
Figure 4 | Nuclear Electricity Generation and Share in Global Power Generation .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 33
Figure 5 | Nuclear Power Reactor Grid Connections and Closures in the World  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 34
Figure 6 | Nuclear Power Reactor Grid Connections and Closures – The Continuing China Effect .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 35
Figure 7 | World Nuclear Reactor Fleet, 1954–2019  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 37
Figure 8 | Nuclear Reactors “Under Construction” in the World  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 38
Figure 9 | Average Annual Construction Times in the World .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 41
Figure 10 | Delays for Units Started Up 2018–2019 .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 41
Figure 11 | Construction Starts in the World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Figure 12 | Construction Starts in the World/China .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .44Figure 13 | Cancelled or Suspended Reactor Constructions  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 45
Figure 14 | Age Distribution of Operating Reactors in the World .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 46
Figure 15 | Age Distribution of Closed Nuclear Power Reactors .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 47
Figure 16 | Nuclear Reactor Closure Age 1963 – 1 July 2019 .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 48
Figure 17 | The 40-Year Lifetime Projection (not including LTOs) .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .49Figure 18 | The PLEX Projection (not including LTOs)  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 50
Figure 19 | Forty-Year Lifetime Projection versus PLEX Projection  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  51
Figure 20 | Unavailability of Belgian Nuclear Reactors in 2018 (Cumulated)  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 56
Figure 21 | Unavailability of Belgian Nuclear Reactors in 2018 (by Outage Period) .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 57
Figure 22 | The Doel-1 Case .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 58
Figure 23 | Age Distribution of Chinese Nuclear Fleet .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 59
Figure 24 | Reactor Outages in France in 2018 (in number of units and GWe)  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 71
Figure 25 | Forced and Planned Unavailability of Nuclear Reactors in France in 2018  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 72
Figure 26 | Age Distribution of French Nuclear Fleet (by Decade) .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 73
Figure 27 | Main Developments of the German Power System Between 2010 and 2018 .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .80Figure 28 | Rise and Fall of the Japanese Nuclear Program .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 82
Figure 29 | Age Distribution of Japanese Fleet .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 85
Figure 30 | Status of Japanese Reactor Fleet  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 86
Figure 31 | Age Distribution of U.K. Nuclear Fleet .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .111
Figure 32 | Age Distribution of U.S. Nuclear Fleet .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  121Figure 33 | Timelines of Early Retirement in the United States  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 124
Figure 34 | Change in the Number of Evacuees  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  151Figure 35 | Number of Disaster-related Deaths of the Great East Japan Earthquake .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  152

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 11Figure 36 | Closed Reactors Worldwide by Country and Reactor Technology  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 157
Figure 37 | Overview of Completed Reactor Decommissioning Projects, 1953–2017 .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  158Figure 38 | Global Investment Decisions in Renewables and Nuclear Power 2004–2018 .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  211Figure 39 | Regional Breakdown of Nuclear and Renewable Energy Investment Decisions 2008–2018 .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  212Figure 40 | The Declining Costs of Renewables vs. Traditional Power Sources .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  213Figure 41 | Variation of Wind, Solar and Nuclear Capacity and Electricity Production in the World  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 215
Figure 42 | Net Added Electricity Generation by Power Source 2008–2018 .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  216Figure 43 | Wind, Solar and Nuclear Capacity and Electricity Production in the World .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 217
Figure 44 | Installed Wind, Solar and Nuclear Capacity and Electricity Production in China 2000–2018 .  .  .  .  .  .  .  218Figure 45 | Startup and Closure of Electricity Generating Capacity in the EU in 2018 .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 220
Figure 46 | Changes in Electricity Generating Capacity in the EU in 2000–2018 .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  221Figure 47 | Wind, Solar and Nuclear Capacity and Electricity Production in the EU .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  221Figure 48 | Wind, Solar and Nuclear Capacity and Electricity Production in the EU .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  223Figure 49 | Wind, Solar and Nuclear Installed Capacity and Electricity Production in India .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  224Figure 50 | Increases in Electricity Production from Nuclear, Solar and Wind Since 2000 in the United States  .  .  . 225
Figure 51 | Cost Evolution of New Renewables vs. Operating Nuclear  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 240
Figure 52 | Average Annual Increase of Nuclear, Wind, and Solar .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  251Figure 53 | Average Annual Increase of Nuclear, Wind, and Solar  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  252Figure 54 | Nuclear Reactors Startups and Closures in the EU28, 1956–1 July 2019 .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 271
Figure 55 | Nuclear Reactors and Net Operating Capacity in the EU28 .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  272Figure 56 | Age Distribution of the EU28 Reactor Fleet  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 272
Figure 57 | Age Distribution of the Swiss Nuclear Fleet  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 281
Figure 58 | Age Distribution of the Russian Nuclear Fleet .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 298

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 12

TABLE OF TABLES
Table 1 | Nuclear Reactors “Under Construction” (as of 1 July 2019)  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 39
Table 2 | Reactor Construction Times 2009–mid-2019  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 42
Table 3 | Belgian Nuclear Fleet (as of 1 July 2019) .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .53Table 4 | Legal Closure Dates for German Nuclear Reactors 2011–2022 .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  79
Table 5 | Official Reactor Closures Post-3/11 in Japan .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  84
Table 6 | Schedule Closure Dates for Nuclear Power Reactors in Korea 2023–2029  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  98
Table 7 | Scheduled Closure Dates for Nuclear Reactors in Taiwan 2018–2025  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 108
Table 8 | Early-Retirements for U.S. Reactors 2009-2025  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  125Table 9 | U.S. State Emission Credits for Uneconomic Nuclear Reactors 2016–2019 .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 134
Table 10 | Thyroid Cancer Statistics in Fukushima Prefecture .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 154
Table 11 | Update Decommissioning Status in Three Selected Countries .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 162
Table 12 | Current Status of Reactor Decommissioning in Spain  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 164
Table 13 | Current Status of Reactor Decommissioning in Italy  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 166
Table 14 | Current Status of Reactor Decommissioning in Lithuania .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 169
Table 15 | Overview of Reactor Decommissioning in 11 Selected Countries  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 174
Table 16 | Summary of Potential Nuclear Newcomer Countries .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 198
Table 17 | Vendor design review service agreements in force between vendors and the CNSC .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .202
Table 18 | Vendor design review service agreement between vendors and the CNSC under development .  .  .  .202
Table 19 | New-build Costs for Nuclear, Renewables and Efficiency  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 232
Table 20 | Average Nuclear Generating Costs in the United States (by Quartile) .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 239
Table 21 | Average Nuclear Generating Costs in the United States (by Category)  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 241
Table 22 | Spain’s Nuclear Phase-Out Timetable  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 276
Table 23 | Chinese Nuclear Reactors in Operation  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 302
Table 24 | Chinese Nuclear Reactors in LTO .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 303
Table 25 | Status of Japanese Nuclear Reactor Fleet .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  304Table 26 | Status of Nuclear Power in the World  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 318
Table 27 | Nuclear Reactors in the World “Under Construction”  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 319

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 8 | 13

FOREWORD
By Diana Ürge-Vorsatz1
There is no doubt that climate change is with us. Record temperatures around the globe, higher
frequency of droughts, severe fires, storms and flooding are becoming evident even to thestarkest of skeptics. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), that I have thehonor to serve on as Vice-Chair of Working Group III, made it clear in a Special Report “Global
Warming of 1.5°C” that urgent action is needed, as
challenges from delayed actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions include the risk of costescalation, lock-in in carbon-emitting infrastructure, stranded assets, and reduced flexibility
in future response options in the medium to long term.2

Therefore, time is of the essence. While climate scientists have been aware of the notion ofurgency for many years, the notion of “Climate Emergency” has only hit public awareness anddecision-makers’ attention recently.
The energy sector is the largest cause of global greenhouse gas emissions. The pertinence of
mitigation strategy options needs to be judged, among others, according to three key criteria:
feasibility, cost and speed.
The aforementioned IPCC Special Report notes that scenarios achieving the 1.5°C target“generally meet energy service demand with lower energy use, including through enhancedenergy efficiency and show faster electrification of energy end use compared to 2°C”. Thereis no doubt that the key to successfully addressing the climate crises lies in more efficientbuildings, mobility and industry, as well as a dramatic transformation in the way we use
our land. The IPCC also notes that “in electricity generation, shares of nuclear and fossil
fuels with carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS) are modelled to increase in most 1.5°C
pathways”, and several scenarios that reach this temperature target rely heavily on nuclear
power. Similarly to other options relied heavily on by 1.5°C pathways, these scenarios raise thequestion whether the nuclear industry will actually be able to deliver the magnitude of new
power that is required in these scenarios in a cost-effective and timely manner. This report isperhaps the most relevant publication to answer this pertinent question.
The World Nuclear Industry Status Report (WNISR) focuses on the commercial power sector. It
assesses in great detail the industry’s past and present performance, following a multi-criteria
analysis that looks at planning, licensing, siting issues, construction, operation, age, lifetime
extensions and decommissioning. Its international reputation is beyond doubt. Already in2011, an official USAID publication called the WNISR “the authoritative report on the statusof nuclear power plants worldwide”3; the Founding Director of the Forum for the Future andformer Head of the UK Sustainable Development Commission stated that “the WNISR is the
single most important reference document in this space”; the World Scientific’s upcoming
Encyclopedia of Climate Change4 will carry a paper on the WNISR. The former Vice-Chairman
1 - Professor and Former Director of the Center for Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Policy (3CSEP), Central European
University (CEU), Budapest, and Vice-Chair of Working Group III, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
2 - IPCC, “Global Warming of 1.5°C — Summary for Policymakers”, WMO, UNEP, October 2018
3 - USAID-Asia, “Energy Trends in Developing Asia: Priorities for a Low-Carbon Future”, September 2011.
4 - World Scientific, “Encyclopedia of Climate Change”, forthcoming in 2020,see https://www.worldscientific.com/page/encyclopedia-of-climate-change, accessed 6 September 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 of the Japan Atomic Energy Commission recommended: “All concerned parties, including
nuclear industry organizations as well as government institutions, should read the WNISR tounderstand the real issues the nuclear industry is facing.”
The WNISR2019 paints a picture of an international nuclear industry with substantial
challenges. Remarkably, over the past two years, the largest historic nuclear builder
Westinghouse and its French counterpart AREVA went bankrupt. Trend indicators in thereport suggest that the nuclear industry may have reached its historic maxima: nuclear power
generation peaked in 2006, the number of reactors in operation in 2002, the share of nuclear
power in the electricity mix in 1996, the number of reactors under construction in 1979,
construction starts in 1976. As of mid-2019, there is one unit less in operation than in 1989.
The WNISR provides the most detailed annual account of the status and outlook of the nuclear
power industry based on empirical analysis of its 65-year history. If it is difficult to forecast the
future, it is all the more important to understand the past and present in order to be able todesign realistic, feasible, affordable strategies for the coming decades. For example, according
to the WNISR, the building rate would have to roughly triple over the coming decade in orderto maintain the status quo. However, after less than a decade of China-driven modest growth,building is on the decline again as the number of units under construction dropped from 68 in2013 to 46 as of mid-2019.
The IPCC Special Report notes:
The political, economic, social and technical feasibility of solar energy, wind energy andelectricity storage technologies has improved dramatically over the past few years, while thatof nuclear energy and carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS) in the electricity sector havenot shown similar improvements.5

The WNISR2019 echoes these findings. In 2018, ten nuclear countries generated more powerwith renewable than with fission energy. In spite of its ambitious nuclear program, China
produced more power from wind alone than from nuclear plants. In India, in the fiscal year to
March 2019, not only wind, but for the first time solar out-generated nuclear, and new solar is
now competitive with existing coal plants in the market. In the European Union, renewables
accounted for 95 percent of all new electricity generating capacity added in the past year.
The WNISR is full of pieces of information that put data into perspective. The 2019-Edition
also contains a new focus on Climate Change and Nuclear Power that reflects in depth
about the capacity of the nuclear industry to deliver the magnitude of new power and capacity
modeled in several ambitious climate scenarios—whether with new or existing plants—in acost-effective and timely manner.
The WNISR is an excellent resource as it provides insights into the choices facing policymakers
and its historic perspective is invaluable to the energy sector where investment andmanagement decisions have decade-long effects. I would therefore recommend that decision
makers and investors all read this report prior to making their decisions.

5 - IPCC, “Global Warming of 1.5°C – Strengthening and Implementing the Global Response”, Chapter 4, WMO, UNEP, October 2018.

| 14

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 8 | 15

KEY INSIGHTS
China Still Dominates Developments, But…
ɆɆ In 2018, nuclear power generation in the world increased by 2.4% of which 1.8% due to a 19% increase in China. Global
nuclear power generation excluding China increased by 0.6% for the first time after decreasing three years in a row, but
without making up for the decline since 2014.

ɆɆ Nine reactors started up in 2018 of which seven were in China and two in Russia.
ɆɆ Four units started up in the first half of 2019, of which two were in China.
ɆɆ The number of units under construction globally declined for the sixth year in a row, from 68 reactors at the end of 2013
to 46 by mid‑2019, of which 10 are in China.
But…

ɆɆ Still no construction start of any commercial reactor in China since December 2016.
ɆɆ China will by far miss its Five-Year-Plan 2020 nuclear targets of 58 GW installed and 30 GW under construction.
ɆɆ China spent a record US$146 billion on renewables in 2017—more than half of the world’s total—and saw a decline to
US$91 billion in 2018, but still close to twice the U.S., the second largest investor with US$48.5 billion.

No More Reactor Restarts in Japan and Global Construction Delays
ɆɆ The nuclear share of global electricity generation has continued its slow decline from a historic peak of about 17.5 percent
in 1996 to 10.15 percent in 2018.

ɆɆ Japan had restarted nine reactors by mid-2018 and none since.
ɆɆ As of mid-2019, 28 reactors—including 24 in Japan—are in Long-Term Outage (LTO).
ɆɆ At least 27 of the 46 units under construction are behind schedule, mostly by several years; 11 have reported increased
delays and 3 have had documented delays for the first time over the past year.

ɆɆ Only nine of the 17 units scheduled for startup in 2018 were actually connected to the grid.
Renewables Continue to ThriveɆɆ A record 165 GW of renewables were added to the world’s power grids in 2018, up from 157 GW added the previous year.
The nuclear operating capacity increased by 9 GW6 to reach 370 GW (excluding 25 GW in LTO), a new historic maximum, slightly exceeding the previous peak of 368 GW in 2006.

ɆɆ Globally, wind power output grew by 29% in 2018, solar by 13%, nuclear by 2.4%. Compared to a decade ago, non‑hydrorenewables generate over 1,900 TWh more power, exceeding coal and natural gas, while nuclear produces less.

ɆɆ Over the past decade, levelized cost estimates for utility-scale solar dropped by 88%, wind by 69%, while nuclear
increased by 23%. Renewables now come in below the cost of coal and natural gas.

Climate Change and Nuclear PowerɆɆ To protect the climate, we must abate the most carbon at the least cost and in the least time, so we must pay attention tocarbon, cost, and time, not to carbon alone.

ɆɆ Non-Nuclear Options Save More Carbon Per Dollar. In many nuclear countries, new renewables can now compete economically with existing nuclear power plants. The closure of uneconomic reactors will not directly save CO2 emissions
but can indirectly save more CO2 than closing a coal-fired plant, if the nuclear plant’s larger saved operating costs are reinvested in efficiency or cheap modern renewables that in turn displace more fossil-fueled generation.

ɆɆ Non-Nuclear Options Save More Carbon Per Year. While current nuclear programs are particularly slow, current
renewables programs are particularly fast. New nuclear plants take 5–17 years longer to build than utility-scale solar or
onshore wind power, so existing fossil-fueled plants emit far more CO2 while awaiting substitution by the nuclear option.
Stabilizing the climate is urgent, nuclear power is slow.

6 - All figures are given for nominal net electricity generating capacity. GW stands for gigawatt or thousand megawatts.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 16

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
AND CONCLUSIONSAs its preceding editions, the World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2019 (WNISR2019) provides acomprehensive overview of nuclear power plant data, including information on age, operation,
production and construction. A new chapter on Climate Change and Nuclear Power addresses
the crucial question of the performance of the nuclear option in countering the increasingly
obvious climate emergency. The WNISR assesses the status of new-build programs in the
31 current nuclear countries as well as in potential newcomer countries. WNISR2019 has put
particular attention on 10 Focus Countries representing about two-thirds of the global fleet.
The Fukushima Status Report gives an overview of the standing of onsite and offsite issues
eight years after the beginning of the catastrophe. The Decommissioning Status Reportfor the second time provides an overview of the current state of nuclear reactors that havebeen permanently closed. The Nuclear Power vs. Renewable Energy chapter offers global
comparative data on investment, capacity, and generation from nuclear, wind and solar energy.
Finally, as usual, Annex 1 presents a country-by-country overview of the remaining countries’
operating nuclear power plants.

Reactor Startups & Closures
Startups. At the beginning of 2018, 15 reactors were scheduled for startup during the year;
seven of these made it, plus two that were expected in 2019; of these nine startups, seven werein China and two in Russia.
In mid-2018, 13 reactors were scheduled for startup in 2019, of which five had been connectedto the grid as of mid-2019 (including the two started up in 2018)—and four have already been
officially delayed until at least 2020. One reactor that was connected to the grid in June 2019,was listed in WNISR2018 as expected to start up only in 2020. The startups in China over the
18 months to July 2019 include the long-awaited grid connections for two Framatome‑Siemens
designed European Pressurized Water Reactors (EPR) and four Westinghouse AP‑1000s.
Closures. Three reactors were closed in 2018, two in Russia and one in the U.S., and a further
reactor was closed in the U.S. in May 2019. The Wolsong-1 reactor in South Korea also ceased
operation in June 2018, which was only officially confirmed later. In July 2019, Japanese utility
Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) announced the closure of the four Fukushima Dainireactors, situated 15 km from the site of Fukushima Daichi subject to disastrous accidents in
2011. WNISR had already registered all four units as closed. TEPCO announced in August 2019that it will also decommission five of its seven units at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, leaving thecompany with only two of its original fleet of 17 reactors.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Operation & Construction Data 7
Reactor Operation and Production. There are 31 countries operating 417 nuclear reactors8—
excluding Long-Term Outages (LTOs)—an increase of four units compared to mid-2018, but
one less than in 1989 and 21 fewer than the 2002 peak of 438. The increase is partially due tothe restart of 4 reactors previously in LTO.9 The total operating capacity increased over the
past year by 3.4 percent to reach 370 GW,10 which is a new historic maximum, exceeding theprevious peak of 368 GW in 2006. Annual nuclear electricity generation reached 2,563 TWhin 2018—a 2.4 percent increase over the previous year, mainly due to China—but remained
3.7 percent below the historic peak in 2006. After three years of decline, the world nuclear
power generation outside China grew by 0.7 percent in 2018 but was still below the level of2014.
WNISR classifies 28 reactors around the world as being in LTO, all considered operating by
the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).11 These include 24 reactors in Japan, and one
each in Canada, China, South Korea and Taiwan12 . Four reactors have been restarted from
LTO since mid-2018, two in India (Kakrapar-1 and -2) and one each in Argentina (Embalse)and France (Paluel-2). Three reactors, two in Japan (Genkai-2, Onagawa-1) and one in
Taiwan (Chinshan-1), moved from LTO to closed.
As in previous years, in 2018, the “big five” nuclear generating countries—by rank, theUnited States, France, China, Russia and South Korea—generated 70 percent of all nuclear
electricity in the world. As in 2017, two countries, the U.S. and France, accounted for47.5 percent of 2018 global nuclear production.
Share in Electricity/Energy Mix. The nuclear share of the world’s gross power generation has
continued its slow decline from a historic peak of 17.46 percent in 1996 to 10.15 percent in 2018.
Nuclear power’s share of global commercial primary energy consumption has remained stablesince 2014 at around 4.4 percent.
Reactor Age. In the absence of major new-build programs apart from China, the unit-weighted
average age of the world operating nuclear reactor fleet continues to rise, and by mid-2019
reached 30.1 years, exceeding the figure of 30 years for the first time. A total of 272 reactors,
two-thirds of the world fleet, have operated for 31 or more years, including 80 (19 percent) thathave reached 41 years or more.
Lifetime Projections. If all currently operating reactors were closed at the end of a 40-year
lifetime—with the exception of the 85 that are already operating for more than 40 years—with
all units under construction scheduled to have started up, installed nuclear capacity would
still decrease by 9.5 GW by 2020. In total, 14 additional reactors (compared to the end‑of‑2018
7 - See Focus Countries and Annex 1 for a country-by-country overview of reactors in operation and under construction as well as thenuclear share in electricity generation.
8 - Unless otherwise noted, all figures indicated reflect the situation as of 1 July 2019.
9 - +8 startups +4 restarts –3 new LTOs –5 closures = +4 net
10 - All figures are given for nominal net electricity generating capacity. GW stands for gigawatt or thousand megawatts.
11 - WNISR considers that a unit is in Long-Term Outage (LTO) if it produced zero power in the previous calendar year and in the firsthalf of the current calendar year. This classification is applied retroactively starting on the day the unit is disconnected from the grid.
WNISR counts the startup of a reactor from its day of grid connection, and its closure from the day of grid disconnection.
12 - The Taiwanese unit, Chinshan-2, was officially closed in July 2019.

| 17

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 8 

status) would have to be started up or restarted prior to the end of 2020 in order to maintainthe status quo of operating units. In the following decade to 2030, 188 units (165.5 GW) would
have to be replaced—3.2 times the number of startups achieved over the past decade. In themeantime, construction starts are on a declining trend since 2010.
Construction. Sixteen countries are currently building nuclear power plants, one more thanin mid-2018, as the United Kingdom officially started building the first unit of Hinkley Point C.
As of 1 July 2019, 46 reactors were under construction—4 fewer than mid-2018 and 22 fewer
than in 2013—of which 10 in China. Total capacity under construction is 44.6 GW, 3.9 GW lessthan one year earlier.
ɆɆ The current average time since work started at the 46 units under construction is 6.7 years,
on the rise for the past two years from an average of 6.2 years as of mid-2017. Many units
are still years away from completion.
ɆɆ All reactors under construction in at least half of the 16 countries have experienced delays,
mostly several years long. At least 27 (59 percent) of the building projects are delayed.
ɆɆ Of 27 reactors behind schedule, at least eleven have reported increased delays and three
more have documented delays for the first time over the past year since WNISR2018.
ɆɆ Two reactors have been listed as “under construction” for more than 34 years, Mochovce‑3and ‑4 in Slovakia, and their startup has been further delayed, currently to 2020–21.
ɆɆ Six additional reactors have been listed as “under construction” for a decade or more: thetwo “swimming reactors” Akademik Lomonosov‑1 and ‑2 in Russia, the Prototype Fast
Breeder Reactor (PFBR) in India, the Olkiluoto-3 reactor project in Finland, Shimane-3
in Japan and the French Flamanville-3 unit. The Finnish, French and Indian projects
have been further delayed over the past year while the Japanese one does not even have aprovisional startup date.
ɆɆ The average construction time of the latest 63 units in nine countries (of which 37 in
China) that started up since 2009 was 9.8 years—the first time in years to slip just below
ten years—with a very large range from 4.1 to 43.5 years.

Construction Starts & New-Build Issues
Construction Starts. In 2018, construction began on 5 reactors and in the first half of 2019
on one (in Russia). This compares to 15 construction starts in 2010 and 10 in 2013. There has
been no construction start of any commercial reactor in China since December 2016. Analysis
shows that construction starts in the world peaked in 1976 at 44.
Construction Cancellations. Between 1970 and mid-2019, a total of 94 (12 percent or one
in eight) of all construction projects were abandoned or suspended in 20 countries at various
stages of advancement.

Potential Newcomer Countries - Program Delays & Cancellations
Construction Ongoing. Four newcomer countries are actually building reactors—Bangladesh,
Belarus, Turkey and United Arab Emirates (UAE). The first reactor startup in UAE is at least
three years behind schedule. The first unit in Belarus is at least one year delayed. At the| 18

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 Turkish Akkuyu site, cracks were identified in the foundation of the reactor building, leading
to replacement work and likely to delays. The project in Bangladesh only started recently and itis therefore difficult to assess potential delays.
Cancellations and Delays. New-build plans have been cancelled including in Turkey withthe second Japanese shareholder Mitsubishi pulling out of the Sinop project in late 2018. The
perennial Polish nuclear projects have been postponed again with first power generation now
envisaged by 2033. In Egypt, a site permit was issued, but nuclear electricity is not expected
before 2026–27. In Jordan and Indonesia, after the cancellation of large nuclear projects,
nuclear proponents are back to the drawing board, with Small Modular Reactors this time. In
Kazakhstan, after years of talks, the Deputy Energy Minister stated that there was no “concretedecision” to build a nuclear plant. Saudi Arabia ploughs ahead with its nuclear plans, however,“at a slower pace than originally expected”, as Reuters put it. Thailand’s largest private powercompany prefers to invest in a nuclear plant in China rather than at home. Vietnam’s nationalenergy company EVN does not even mention nuclear anymore.

Small Modular Reactors (SMRs)
Following assessments of the development status and prospects of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs)
in WNISR2015 and WNISR2017, this year’s update does not reveal great changes.
Argentina. The CAREM-25 project under construction since 2014 is at least three years late.
Canada. A massive lobbying effort is underway to promote SMRs for remote communities andmining operations. Development is in the design stage.
China. A high-temperature reactor under development since the 1970s has been underconstruction since 2012. It is currently at least three years behind schedule.
India. An Advanced Heavy Water Reactor (AHWR) design has been under development sincethe 1990s, and its construction start is getting continuously delayed.
Russia. Two “floating reactors” have been built. The first one went critical, with construction
starting in 2007, it took at least four times as long as planned.
South Korea. The System-Integrated Modular Advanced Reactor (SMART) has been underdevelopment since 1997. In 2012, the design received approval by the Safety Authority, but
nobody wants to build it in the country, because it is not cost-competitive.
United Kingdom. Rolls-Royce is the only company interested in participating in thegovernment’s SMR competition but has requested significant subsidies that he government isapparently resisting. The Rolls-Royce design is at a very early stage but, at 450 MW, it is notreally small.
United States. The Department of Energy (DOE) has generously funded companies promoting
SMR development. A single design by NuScale is currently undergoing the design certification
process.
Overall, there is no sign of any major breakthroughs for SMRs, either with regard to thetechnology or with regard to the commercial side.

| 19

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Focus Countries – Widespread Extended Outages
The following nine Focus Countries plus Taiwan, covered in depth in this report, represent
one-third of the nuclear countries hosting about two-thirds of the global reactor fleet and sixof the world’s ten largest nuclear power producers. Key facts for year 2018:
Belgium. Nuclear provided a third less power than in 2017 and represented only 34 percent of
the country’s electricity, and little more than half of the peak in 1986. Reactors were shut down
for repair and upgrading for half of the year on average.
China. Nuclear power generation grew by 19 percent in 2018 and contributed 4.2 percent of allelectricity generated in China, up from 3.9 percent in 2017.
Finland. Nuclear generation was stable compared to previous years. The Olkiluoto-3 EPR
project was delayed again, and grid connection might take until April 2020 at least, due topressurizer vibration problems.
France. Nuclear plants generated 3.7 percent more power than in 2017, representing 71.7 percentof the country’s electricity, just 0.1 percentage points better than in the previous year, whichis the lowest share since 1988. Outages at zero capacity cumulated over 5,000 reactor-days oralmost three months per reactor on average. The Flamanville-3 EPR project was delayed until
at least the end of 2022. The target date to reduce the nuclear share to 50 percent was pushed
back from 2025 to 2035 in the draft energy bill.
Germany. Germany’s remaining seven nuclear reactors’ generation remained almost stable(–0.4 percent) at 71.9 TWh net in 2018, about half of record year 2001. They provided a stable11.7 percent of Germany’s electricity generation, little more than one-third of the historicmaximum two decades ago (30.8 percent in 1997). In the meantime, renewables have generated
close to twice as much more power (+113 TWh) than was lost through the fading nuclear
production (–64 TWh) since 2010. In 2018, renewables provided 16.7 percent of final energy inGermany (in comparison, nuclear provided 17.4 percent of French final energy).
Japan. Nuclear plants provided 6.2 percent of the electricity in Japan in 2018, a significant
increase over the 3.6 percent in 2017 (36 percent in 1998). As of mid-2019, nine reactors had
restarted—no restart since mid-2018—and 24 remained in LTO (two were moved from LTO toclosed).
South Korea. Nuclear power output dropped by another 10 percent leading to a decline of
19 percent since 2015, and supplied 23.7 percent of the country’s electricity, significantly lessthan half of the maximum 30 years ago (53.3 percent in 1987).
United Kingdom. Nuclear generation decreased by a further 7.5 percent and provided only
17.7 percent of the power in the country, down from the maximum of 26.9 in 1997. Whileconstruction officially started at Hinkley Point C, prospects for other new-build projects havereceded with further potential investors pulling out (Japan’s Toshiba, Hitachi, Korea’s KEPCO).
United States. Nuclear power plants generated a historic maximum of 808 TWh (+3 TWh),while their share in the electricity mix dropped below 20 percent (19.3 percent), 3.2 percentage
points below the record level of 22.5 percent in 1995. State subsidies have been granted to four
uneconomic nuclear plants to avoid their “early closure”, four more are likely, and several| 20

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 others are under negotiation. However, many units remain threatened with early closure
because they cannot compete in the market.

Fukushima Status Report
Over eight years have passed since the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant accident(Fukushima accident) began, triggered by the East Japan Great Earthquake on 11 March 2011
(also referred to as 3/11 throughout the report) and subsequent events.

Onsite Challenges
Spent Fuel Removal from the pool of Unit 3 finally started in April 2019. Target dates for thestart of the operation for Units 1 and 2 are “around FY 2023”. Debris removal from the poolof Unit 1 was completed in February 2019. For Unit 2 work has not begun, as the spent fuelremoval process has been redesigned.
A Fuel Debris Removal method was supposed to be designed by FY 2019. However, as of
mid‑year, no announcement has been made. Removal from the first unit was supposed to startby 2021, which does not seem credible at this point.
Contaminated Water Management. Large quantities of water are still continuously being
injected to cool the fuel debris of Units 1–3. The highly contaminated water runs out of thecracked containments into the basements where it mixes with water that has penetrated
the basements from an underground river. The commissioning of a dedicated bypass systemand the pumping of groundwater has reduced the influx of water from around 400 m3/day toabout 170 m3/day. An equivalent amount of water is partially decontaminated and stored in
1,000‑m3 tanks. Thus, a new tank is needed every six days. The storage capacity onsite has
been increased to over 1.1 million m3 and will be enlarged to 1.4 million m3 by the end of 2020.
The ocean release of the water remains widely contested, especially since it was revealed that alarge share of the water does not even meet the safety regulations for release.
Worker Health. As of February 2019, there were almost 7,300 workers involved indecommissioning work on-site, 87 percent of whom were subcontractors of Tokyo ElectricPower Company (TEPCO). A Health Ministry investigation showed that over half of 290
involved companies were in violation of some kind of labor legislation. In 2018, two additional
workers’ illnesses were recognized as radiation-induced, bringing to six the number of
acknowledged occupational diseases due to work at Fukushima.

Offsite Challenges
Amongst the main offsite issues are the future of tens of thousands of evacuees, the assessmentof health consequences of the disaster, the management of decontamination wastes and thecosts involved.
Evacuees. As of April 2019, almost 40,000 Fukushima Prefecture residents—not including“self-evacuees”—are still officially designated evacuees of whom about 7,200 are livingin the prefecture. According to the Prefecture, the number peaked just under 165,000 in| 21

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

May 2012. The government has continued to lift restriction orders for affected municipalities.
However, according to a recent survey by the Reconstruction Agency, e.g. only 5 percent of
the people returned to Namie Town, while half of the former residents already decided not
to return. Others remain undecided. The treatment of voluntary evacuees13 is worsening.
Fukushima Prefecture stopped providing free housing in March 2017 and terminated rent
assistance for low-income households in March 2019. Once the free housing offer is terminated,
they are no longer considered voluntary evacuees and disappear from the statistics. The Special
Rapporteurs from the UN Human Rights Commission repeatedly raised concerns about theJapanese policies concerning evacuees and human rights violations linked to families andworkers.
Health Issues. Officially, as of April 2019, a total of 212 people have been diagnosed with amalignant tumor or suspected of having a malignant tumor and 169 people underwent surgery.
While the cause-effect relationship between Fukushima-related radiation exposure andillnesses has not been established, questions have been raised about the examination procedure
itself and the processing of information.
Food Contamination. According to official statistics, among 300,000 samples taken in
FY 2018 a total of 313 food items were identified in excess of the legal limits (a significant
increase over the 200 items found in FY 2017). As of April 2019, in 23 countries post-3/11 import
restrictions remain in place.
Decontamination. Decontamination activities in the Special Decontamination Area ended in
March 2018 and generated 16.5 million m3 of contaminated soil. Outside Fukushima Prefecture,contaminated soil is stored in more than 28,000 places (333,000 m3). As of April 2019, only
about 20 percent of the soil had been moved to dedicated storage areas.

Decommissioning Status Report – Soaring Costs
As an increasing number of nuclear facilities either reaches the end of their pre-determined
operational lifetimes or closes due to deteriorating economic conditions, the challenges ofreactor decommissioning are coming to the fore.
ɆɆ As of mid-2019, 162 of the 181 closed reactors in the world (eight more than a year earlier)
are awaiting or are in various stages of decommissioning.
ɆɆ Only 19 units have been fully decommissioned: 13 in the U.S., five in Germany, and one inJapan. Of these, only 10 have been returned to greenfield sites. No change over the year
since WNISR2018.
ɆɆ Case Studies: In France, decommissioning of the small 80 MW Brennilis reactor
will be further delayed, with the earliest possible completion in 2038. In Germany,
Neckarwestheim-1 and Philippsburg-1 were defueled. In Italy, decommissioning costestimates for the four reactors that used to be operated have almost doubled since2004 to US$8.1 billion. In Lithuania, decommissioning cost estimates for two Soviet,
Chernobyl‑type reactors increased by two-thirds in five years to US$3.7 billion. If waste
management and disposal was included, costs would increase to US$6.8 billion, leaving an
estimated funding gap of US$4.7 billion. In Spain, decommissioning cost estimates for the
13 - People who lived outside the evacuation zones but evacuated voluntarily.

| 22

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

first 240-MW unit to close in 2006 have doubled since to US$292 million. In the U.S., salesof closed reactors and transfers of decommissioning funds to private waste managementcompanies is spreading. Of ten units undergoing decommissioning, six were sold to suchcommercial decommissioning companies. The practice raises obvious liability questions incase the available funds run out.

Nuclear Power vs. Renewable Energy Deployment
Cost. Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) analysis for the U.S. shows that the total costs ofrenewables are now below of coal and combined cycle gas. Between 2009 and 2018, utilityscale solar costs came down 88 percent and wind 69 percent, while new nuclear costs increased
by 23 percent.
Investment. In 2018, the reported global investment decisions for the construction of nuclear
power totaled around US$33 billion for 6.2 GW, which is less than a quarter of the investment
in wind and solar individually, with over US$134 billion investment in wind power and
US$139 billion in solar, and this year’s investment was higher than previous years, but skewed
by the start of construction of the extremely expensive Hinkley Point C in the U.K. China
remains the top investor in renewables, spending US$91 billion in 2018; however, this was
significantly lower than the record US$146 billion invested in 201714 , due to dropping prices
and to policy changes over the year.
Installed Capacity. In 2018, the 165 GW of renewables added to the world’s power grids,
up from 157 GW added the previous year, set a new record. Wind added 49.2 GW andsolar‑photovoltaics (PV) 96 GW, both slightly below the 2017-levels. These numbers compare
to a net 8.8 GW increase for nuclear power.
Electricity Generation. Ten of the 31 nuclear countries, Brazil, China, Germany, India, Japan,
Mexico, Netherlands, Spain, South Africa and U.K.—a list that includes three of the world’s
four largest economies—generated more electricity in 2018 from non-hydro renewables thanfrom nuclear power. That is one more, South Africa, than in 2017.
In 2018, annual growth for global electricity generation from solar was 29 percent, for wind
power about 13 percent. Both growth rates are down compared to 2017, from 38 percent and18 percent respectively. Nuclear power increased output by 2.4 percent in 2018, mainly due toChina, versus +1 percent in 2017.
Compared to 1997, when the Kyoto Protocol on climate change was signed, in 2018 an additional
1,259 TWh of wind power was produced globally and 584 TWh of solar PV electricity, comparedto nuclear’s additional 299 TWh. Over the past decade, non-hydro renewables have added
more kilowatt‑hours than coal or gas and twice as many as hydropower, while nuclear plants
generated less power in 2018 than in 2008.
In China, as in the previous six years, in 2018, electricity production from wind alone (366 TWh)by far exceeded that from nuclear (277 TWh), with solar power catching up quickly (178 TWh).

14 - The number was increased by US$20 billion from earlier estimates.

| 23

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

The same phenomenon is seen in India, where wind power (60 TWh) outpaced nuclear—stagnating at 35 TWh—for the third year in a row. At the same time, solar power soared from
11 TWh in 2016 to 31 TWh in 2018, now hot on nuclear’s tail.
In the U.S., in 2018, 211 GW of existing coal capacity, or 74 percent of the national fleet, was at
risk from local wind or solar that could provide the same amount of electricity more cheaply.
In April 2019, for the first time ever, renewables (hydro, biomass, wind, solar and geothermal)
generated more electricity than coal-fired plants across the U.S. Wind and solar generation
topped coal’s output in Texas in the first quarter of 2019, the first time that this has happened
on a quarterly basis.
In the European Union virtually all new capacity added in 2018 was renewable (95 percent
wind, solar and biomass). Wind alone supplied 11.6 percent of the EU’s total power in 2018,led by Denmark at a remarkable 41 percent, Portugal and Ireland at 28 percent, and Germany
at 21 percent with Spain and the U.K. at 19 percent (up from 13.5 percent in 2017). Compared
to 1997, in 2018, EU wind turbines produced an additional 371 TWh and solar 128 TWh, while
nuclear power generation declined by 94 TWh.

Climate Change and Nuclear PowerThe Stakes. To protect the climate, we must abate the most carbon at the least cost—and in
the least time—so we must pay attention to carbon, cost, and time, not to carbon alone.
Nuclear Power vs. Climate Protection Options. If existing nuclear generation (one-tenthof global commercial electricity) displaced an average mix of fossil-fueled power generation,
it would offset the equivalent of 4 percent of total global CO2 emissions. Expanding nuclear
power could displace other generators—fossil-fueled or renewable. Renewables and efficiency
can “bolster energy security” at least as well as nuclear power can. The nuclear industry has
become one of the most potent obstacles to renewables’ further progress by diverting demandand capital to itself. New operating subsidies for uneconomic reactors in the U.S. or preferential
dispatch like the “nuclear-must-run” rule in Japan lead to uncompetitive generation to serve
demand for which efficiency and renewables are not allowed to compete.
Non-Nuclear Options Save More Carbon Per Dollar. Nuclear new-build costs have been on
the rise for many years (see previous WNISR editions). Just in the past five years, U.S. solar
and wind prices fell by two-thirds, putting new nuclear power out of the money by about
5–10‑fold (see Nuclear Power vs. Renewable Energy Deployment). Nuclear new-build costs
many times more per kWh, so it buys many times less climate solution per dollar than major
low-carbon competitors—efficiency, wind and solar. Newer technologies do not change this:in the latest nuclear designs, so-called Gen‑III+ reactors, ~78–87 percent of total costs is forthe non-nuclear part. Thus, if the other ~13–22 percent, the “nuclear island”, were free, the restof the plant would still be grossly uncompetitive with renewables or efficiency. That is, evenfree steam from any kind of fuel or fission is not good enough, because the rest of the plant
costs too much. The business case for modern renewables is so convincing to investors that thelatest official U.S. forecast foresees 45 GW of renewable additions from mid-2019 to mid-2022,
vs. net retirements of 7 GW for nuclear and 17 GW for coal.

| 24

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 8 

In many nuclear countries, new renewables can now compete with existing nuclear power plants
and their operating, maintenance and fuel costs. While reactor-by-reactor data is not available,
published information illustrates that many nuclear plants are not competitive anymore. Theirclosure will not directly save CO2 emissions but can indirectly save more CO2 than closing acoal-fired plant, if the nuclear plant’s larger saved operating costs are reinvested in efficiency orcheap modern renewables that in turn displace more fossil-fueled generation.
Substitution for Closed Nuclear Plants. Four cases from four different states in the U.S.
illustrate that the combination of strong efficiency and renewables policies could not only
make up for the loss of nuclear production but allowed for the decrease of coal-based power
generation and led to overall CO2 emissions reductions.
Non-Nuclear Options Save More Carbon Per Year. While some nuclear countries had aparticularly fast buildup in the 1970s and 1980s (Belgium, France, Sweden, U.S.), many nuclear
countries show faster buildup of renewables than in their nuclear program (China, Germany,
Italy, India, Spain, U.K., and Scotland individually). A key point is that while current nuclear
programs are particularly slow, current renewables programs are particularly fast (as WNISR
has documented over the past decade). According to a recent assessment, new nuclear plants
take 5–17 years longer to build than utility-scale solar or onshore wind power, so existing fossilfueled plants emit far more CO2 while awaiting substitution by the nuclear option. In 2018,non-hydro renewables outpaced the world’s most aggressive nuclear program, in China, by afactor of two, in India by a factor of three.
Stabilizing the climate is urgent, nuclear power is slow. It meets no technical or operational
need that these low-carbon competitors cannot meet better, cheaper, and faster. Evensustaining economically distressed reactors saves less carbon per dollar and per year than
reinvesting its avoidable operating cost (let alone its avoidable new subsidies) into cheaper
efficiency and renewables.

| 25

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 26

INTRODUCTION
The first word in the introduction to the 2018-edition of the World Nuclear Industry Status
Report (WNISR) was “Heat”. Since then, many registered temperature records around theworld were broken and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) issued its mosturgent report to date. Over the past year, more than 900 local governments in 18 countries
representing over 200 million people have “declared a climate emergency and committed toaction to drive down emissions at emergency speed”, a movement spreading rapidly.15
As the greenhouse gas emissions generated by the construction and operation of nuclear
power systems are relatively low16 —depending on the systems providing the energy necessary
to provide mining and milling services, construction materials, transport, waste processing
and storage, and, especially, uranium enrichment—some voices have been increasingly audible
pushing for lifetime extensions of existing nuclear power plants or the construction of newones “to address Climate Change”.
WNISR2019 devotes a substantial new chapter (see Climate Change and Nuclear Power)
to the question whether the use of nuclear power represents an effective tool to fight the
rapidly worsening Climate Emergency. The question raises a complex mix of economic,
industrial and systemic issues. However, the outcome of the analysis is surprisingly clear. The
underlying challenge of any potential tool to combat Climate Change is making the best use of
every invested dollar, euro or yuan in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as quickly as
possible. Nuclear new-build turns out to be not only the most expensive, but also the slowest
option to bring results. And while other electricity generating technologies are experiencing
dramatically declining costs—system costs for utility-scale solar photovoltaics dropped by
88 percent in a decade—the price tag of new nuclear power increased (by 23 percent).17 Even
existing, amortized operating nuclear plants are less and less in a position to compete withother options like energy efficiency and renewables, not taking into account system effects
like their role as powerful barriers to innovation, investment and effective energy transition
measures. We are not assessing here specific technical issues, including the fact that nuclear
power is the most water-consuming way to generate electricity and the multiple threats that
Climate Change pose to nuclear facilities. It comes as no surprise that in the summer of 2019a number of reactors again had to reduce output or shut down entirely in several European
countries, as water levels were low in rivers and sea temperatures were heating up. Rising sea
levels and the increasing frequency of droughts, flooding, severe storms and wildfires raise
the risk levels. Operators and regulators only recently began to develop specific programs toaddress these issues. They could be the subject of a future WNISR focus.
With WNISR2018, we started to assess the performance of the French nuclear sector reactorby-reactor and this edition presents the complementary analysis to get a full picture of theyear 2018. The outcome might come as a big surprise to many readers. The average outage
15 - See The Climate Mobilization, “Climate Emergency Campaign”, Undated,
see https://www.theclimatemobilization.org/climate-emergency-campaign, accessed 3 August 2019.
16 - There are many comparative life-cycle analysis studies and they can vary by one order of magnitude in their results. The level ofemissions is also highly sensitive to the electricity mix that powers uranium enrichment plants. However, most studies rate nuclear
power at the same level as renewables like wind power in the same grid system.
17 - According to Lazard, “Lazard’s Levelized Cost of Energy Analysis—Version 12.0”, November 2018,see https://www.lazard.com/media/450784/lazards-levelized-cost-of-energy-version-120-vfinal.pdf, accessed 30 August 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 (at zero power, not including reduced output) per unit for the 58 French reactors was almost
three months (87.6 days) per year, totaling over 5,000 reactor-days (see France Focus). A new,equivalent analysis on Belgium shows that the seven units in the country were down half of theyear on average (see Belgium Focus). There are multiple reasons for this poor performance,with systematically extended maintenance and refurbishment outages at these aging facilities
being the principal cause.
The past year since the release of WNISR2018 has seen China completing the commissioningof the first Generation‑III reactors, designed by western companies Framatome-Siemens (twoEPRs at Taishan) and Westinghouse (four AP‑1000 with two each at Sanmen and Haiyang).
Questions remain about the pace at which China will continue to expand its nuclear program.
Another year went by without any new commercial reactor construction being launched in
China, with the latest one started in December 2016 (see China Focus). There were press
reports about three new government authorizations but any new project has yet to officiallybegin (pouring of concrete for the base slab of the reactor building).
While the first foreign Generation III reactors went into commercial operation in China, theEuropean EPR projects in France and Finland continue their erratic path towards completion.
The French regulator requires the costly, time-consuming repair of welding defects inthe main steam line of the Flamanville-3 project, delaying startup to at least end of 2022.
Meanwhile, builder AREVA‑Siemens is struggling with so-far-unresolved pressurizer vibration
issues at the Olkiluoto-3 unit in Finland, delaying grid connection at least to April 2020(see Finland Focus).
In Japan, no new units have been restarted since mid-2018—four restarted in the first half of2018—and there are still only nine operating reactors in the country. Two additional reactors
have been slated for decommissioning, bringing the total of units abandoned since 3/11—thebeginning of the Fukushima disaster—to 17. In addition, in July 2019, operator Tokyo ElectricPower Company (TEPCO) announced its decision to decommission the four Fukushima
Daini reactors (15 km from the Fukushima Daichi site). WNISR has for years considered
the Fukushima Daini units as closed. As of mid‑2019, 24 reactors remain in Long‑Term
Outage (LTO) with uncertain prospects for restart, still highly controversial amongst theJapanese public (see Japan Focus).
On 28 June 2019, the EPR project at Hinkley Point C project in the U.K. was finally officiallydeclared as “under construction”, almost seven months after the beginning of the concretingof the foundations for the reactor building—the usual international setpoint for construction
start. Other new-build projects in the U.K. continue to run into trouble. After the pullout ofvarious English, French, German and Spanish utilities from the U.K. “market”, the Japanese
Hitachi Group abandoned the Wylfa and Oldbury projects, writing off a ¥300 billion(US$2.75 billion) impairment (see United Kingdom Focus).
In the U.S., there has been little change in the outlook. Many reactors remain threatened withclosure long before their licenses expire because they cannot compete in the market. In somecases, the nuclear industry has been lobbying successfully for subsidies at state level, to help
avoiding “early closures” of uneconomic reactors. Five reactors in three states have thus been“saved” for a few years, a mere postponement of closure in an economic environment that is
likely to only get worse. The only active new-build project in the U.S., at the Vogtle plant in| 27

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Georgia, is accumulating cost and time overruns. Unlike in other states, Georgia Power was
authorized to charge its customers for increasing construction costs. It was estimated that by2018 each 1,000 kWh/month Georgia Power customer would pay US$10 every month towards
the project, currently scheduled to bring the first of two units online by November 2021.
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), the public utility that started up the last nuclear reactors
ever commissioned in the U.S. in 1996 (Watts Bar-1) and 2016 (Watts Bar-2), stated in its latest
Integrated Resource Plan that, while new capacity would be necessary, it would not add any“baseload resources” capacity such as nuclear or coal over the next 20 years “except in the casewhere Small Modular Reactors are promoted for resiliency”.18
Small Modular Reactors or SMRs have made little progress since the WNISR2017 assessment
as this edition’s update concludes “it has become evident that they will be even less capable ofcompeting economically than large nuclear plants, which have themselves been increasingly
uncompetitive” (see Small Modular Reactors).
The WNISR’s overview of the status of decommissioning of closed reactors identifies few
major developments, except the consolidation of a trend in the U.S. where utilities sell theirclosed reactors and transfer decommissioning funds to commercial waste managementcompanies. While eight additional reactors are closed, no new decommissioning project has
been completed, and the gap between the two indicators keeps widening.
The traditional Nuclear Power vs. Renewable Energy chapter shows that it has become
increasingly clear: non-hydro renewables are no longer just cheaper than new-build nuclear
but they are now broadly competitive with new-coal—and increasingly with operating nuclear
and coal plants whose construction costs have been paid off (amortized). Coal is the largest
source of electricity globally, with almost four times the output share of nuclear power.
Therefore, outcompeting coal will open up new opportunities for renewable energy, which willfurther drive down their production costs and increase system integration experience, further
speeding up their deployment.

18 - TVA, “2019 Draft Integrated Resource Plan—Executive Summary”, Tennessee Valley Authority, 15 February 2019,see https://www.tva.gov/file_source/TVA/Site%20Content/Environment/Environmental%20Stewardship/IRP/2019%20Documents/
HDR_TVA%20ExecutiveSummary%20-%20pages.pdf, accessed 10 August 2019.

| 28

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 29

GENERAL OVERVIEWWORLDWIDETHE HISTORIC EXPANSION OF NUCLEAR
POWER – FORECASTING VS. REALITY
The use of nuclear energy remains limited to a small part of the world, with only 31 countries
or 16 percent of the 193 members of the United Nations, operating nuclear power plants. That
number has remained stable since Iran started up its first reactor in 2011. When the Nuclear
Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) was signed in 1968, ten countries had operating nuclear powerreactors (grid connected) and twenty additional countries generated nuclear electricity by
1985. But only four countries (Mexico, China, Romania, Iran) started up commercial reactors
over the past 30 years, while three countries (Italy, Kazakhstan, Lithuania) abandoned theirprograms. Nine of the current 31 nuclear countries have either nuclear phase-out, no-new‑build|
Figure 1 | National Nuclear Power Program Startup and Phase-out

National Nuclear Power Program Startup and Phase-out
Cumulated Number of National Programs, from 1954 to 2018
Nuclear Power Program Status
As of end 2018

Iran
Romania
China
MexicoCzech RepublicSouth Africa
Lithuania
BrazilHungary
Slovenia
TaiwanSouth Korea
FinlandUkraineArmenia
Argentina
Bulgaria
Kazakhstan
Slovakia
Pakistan
Switzerland
India
Netherlands
Spain
SwedenItaly
Japan
Belgium
CanadaGermany
FranceUSA
UK
RussiaPhased-out (3)Phase-out or No-New-Build Policy (9)No Active Construction (11)Active Construction (11)1968
NPT Signature

1954
1

1960
4

1965
10

1970
14

1975
19

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

1980
24

1985
30

1990
30

1995
31

2000
31

2005
31

2010
30

2015 1831
31 Number ofPrograms

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

Note: Japan is counted here among countries with “active construction”—however it is possible that the only project under active
construction (Shimane-3) will be abandoned.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 30

or no‑program-extension policies in place. Eleven countries with operating plants are
currently building new reactors; another eleven countries with operating plants currently haveno active construction ongoing (see Figure 1). In addition, there are four newcomer countries(Bangladesh, Belarus, Turkey, United Arab Emirates) that are building reactors for the firsttime.
The NPT was meant to stimulate the development of nuclear energy programs aroundthe world while limiting the spread of military explosives applications to the five historic
nuclear weapon states. In 1974, the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) “mostlikely” scenario envisaged an installed capacity of over 3,500 GW19 by year 2000, while thehigh scenario imagined more than 5,000 GW. It is these forecasts that triggered the launchof massive plutonium separation programs, as the fear of a rapid natural uranium shortage
led many nuclear organizations, in particular the French Atomic Energy Commission (CEA),
to push for the early, large-scale introduction of plutonium-fueled fast breeder reactors. The
U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (AEC), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation andDevelopment (OECD) and other organizations all considered levels above 1,500 GW operating
nuclear capacity plausible by 2000. In reality, the expansion of nuclear power remained far
below expectations. In 2000, a total capacity of 350 GW was operating in the world, just
one tenth of the IAEA’s “most likely” scenario of 1974 (see Figure 2). As of mid‑2019, total
operating capacity has barely grown to its historic peak of 370 GW, a net addition of little morethan 1 GW per year over the past two decades.
Figure 2 | Forecasted and Real Expansion of Nuclear Capacity in the World

1970s Projections
Nuclear Capacity to 2000 vs. Reality

5 300 - IAEA 1974 Max

in GWe, by Organisation and Projection-Year

4400 - OECD 1973 Accelerated Case
3 950 - USAEC 1974 Max
3 600 - IAEA 1974 Most Likely
3 600 - OECD 1974 Reference Case
2 910 - OECD 1973 Reference Case
2 450 - USAEC 1974 Min

350 - Reality
1970

1975

1980

1985

1990

1995

2000

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Source: Klaus Gufler, “Short and Mid-term Trends of the Development of Nuclear Energy”, June 201319 - Gigawatt or thousand megawatts, about the size of one nuclear reactor; all numbers in GW refer to net electric generating capacity.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

PRODUCTION AND ROLE OF NUCLEAR POWER
The world nuclear fleet generated 2,563 net terawatt-hours (TWh or billion kilowatt-hours) ofelectricity in 201820, a 2.4 percent increase over the previous year—essentially due to China’s
nuclear output increasing by 44 TWh (+19 percent)—but still 4 percent below the historic peakof 2006 (see Figure 3). For the first time in four years, without China, global nuclear power
generation has slightly increased again (+0.7 percent) in 2018 but remained below the levelof 2014. In other words, world nuclear production outside China dropped more in the period
2015–17 than it added in 2018. The numbers illustrate that China continues to dominate theupwards-leaning indicators in nuclear statistics.
Nuclear energy’s share of global commercial gross electricity generation continues its slow but
steady decline from a peak of 17.5 percent in 1996 to 10.15 percent in 2018 (10.28 percent in2017). The nuclear contribution to commercial primary energy remained stable at 4.4 percent.
It has been at this level since 2014 and constitutes a 30-year low.21
In 2018, nuclear generation increased in 14 countries, declined in 12, and remained stable infive.22 Six countries (China, Hungary, Mexico, Pakistan, Russia, U.S.) achieved their greatest
ever nuclear production in 2018.
The following remarkable developments for the year 2018 illustrate the volatile operationalsituation of the individual national reactor fleets (see country-specific sections for details):
ɆɆ Armenia’s only operating reactor dropped generation by 21 percent. The output will likely
decline further in 2019 as the unit was shut down in mid-year for extensive repair andupgrade.
ɆɆ Belgium’s output plunged by 32 percent due to the extension of outages for maintenance,
repair and upgrade. On average, Belgium’s seven units have each been down for half of theyear (see Belgium Focus).
ɆɆ China started up seven new nuclear reactors during the year, a remarkable achievement,
and contributed 44 TWh of the total increase of 60 TWh worldwide (see China Focus).
ɆɆ France increased output by 14 TWh (+3.7 percent), remaining however well below
expectations (see France Focus).
ɆɆ Japan restarted four more units bringing the total of operating reactors to nine andboosting production by 20 TWh (+68.4 percent) (see Japan Focus).
ɆɆ South Korea’s nuclear production dropped by 10 percent (–14 TWh) due to extended
outages for inspection and repair. One of the specific issues that has led to delays in restartsof reactors has been the discovery in 2017 of Containment Liner Plate (CLP) corrosion invarious reactors (see South Korea Focus).

20 - If not otherwise noted, all nuclear capacity and electricity generation figures based on International Atomic Energy
Agency (IAEA), Power Reactor Information System (PRIS) online database, see https://prisweb.iaea.org/Home/Pris.asp.
Production figures are net of the plant’s own consumption unless otherwise noted.
21 - BP, “Statistical Review of World Energy”, June 2019, see https://www.bp.com/content/dam/bp/business-sites/en/global/corporate/
pdfs/energy-economics/statistical-review/bp-stats-review-2019-full-report.pdf, accessed 11 June 2019.
22 - Less than 1 percentage point variation from the previous year.

| 31

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 32

ɆɆ Switzerland’s generation increased by 25 percent after the restart of one of the five-reactor
fleet that had been down for years following the discovery of numerous crack indicationsin its pressure vessel (see Switzerland section).
ɆɆ Taiwan increased output by 24 percent after the restart of two reactors following longoutages. However, generation remained below the level of 2016 (see Taiwan Focus).
ɆɆ The U.S. registered its all-time highest nuclear electricity generation. While the increaseover the previous record in 2010 (+1 TWh) remains marginal, it is noteworthy that thecountry operated six fewer reactors in 2018 than in 2010 (97/103). Even the installedcapacity was slightly lower in 2018 than in 2010 (98.7 GW/100.4 GW), a clear indicationthat operational efficiency has continued to improve (see U.S. Focus).
Figure 3 | Nuclear Electricity Generation in the World... and China23

Nuclear Electricity Production 1985-2018
in the World...

...and in China and the Rest of the Worldin TWh (net) and Share in Electricity Generation (gross)in TWh (net)

1996
Maximum : 17.5%

Share
in %
15

2006
Maximum:
2,660 TWh2018
Production:
2,563 TWh
Share:
10.15%

Nuclear Electricity
Production

5

0

85

1990

1995

China
Rest ofthe World

2015-2017
Without China's contribution,world nuclear production
has declined.

TWh

Nuclear Share

10

2018
World production increased by 2.4%,
but outside China only by 0.7%
and remains below the level of 2014,
already reached in 1999.

2000

2005

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

2010

2015 18

TWh

2500

2500

2000

2000

1500

1500

1000

1000

500

500

0

85

1990

1995

2000

2005

2010

2015 18

0© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Sources: WNISR, with BP, IAEA-PRIS, 2019

As in previous years, in 2018, the “big five” nuclear generating countries—by rank, the U.S.,
France, China, Russia and South Korea—generated 70 percent of all nuclear electricity in theworld (see Figure 4, left side). In 2002, China held position 15, in 2007 it was tenth, before
reaching third place in 2016. Two countries, the U.S. and France, with 47 percent accounted
again for nearly half of global nuclear production in 2018.
In many cases, even where nuclear power generation increased, the addition is not keeping pacewith overall increases in electricity production, leading to a nuclear share below the respective
historic maximum (see Figure 4, right side). It is therefore remarkable that, in 2018, there
were 20 countries that maintained their nuclear share at a constant level (change of less than
1 percentage point) while seven decreased their nuclear shares. Only four countries increased
the role of nuclear power in their electricity mix by more than 1 point (Czech Republic,
Japan, Switzerland and Taiwan), all of them mainly through restarts of units after prolonged
outages. Only two countries (China and Pakistan) reached new historic peak shares of nuclear
23 - BP stands for BP plc; WNISR for World Nuclear Industry Status Report.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 33

in their respective power mix, both at marginal increases getting to still very modest levels,+0.3 percentage points for China (reaching a share of 4.2 percent) and +0.6 percentage points
for Pakistan (attaining 6.8 percent.)
Figure 4 | Nuclear Electricity Generation and Share in Global Power Generation

Nuclear Production in 2017/2018 and Historic Maximumin TWh and Share In Electricity Production
TWh
800

2018

Percentage
600

400

200

0

2005
2018
2018

1994

2018

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

2003
2015

RussiaHungary

2014

South Korea

Sweden1996

CanadaBelgium

UkraineSwitzerland

1996
2005

UK

2018

60

Ukraine

1999

2007

50

China

Bulgaria

1999

40

FranceSweden2018

30

FranceGermany

2001

20

Slovakia

2004

1998

10

USA

Slovenia

2001

2017
2018
Historic Maximum
1998 Historic Maximum Year

0

1986

2002
2013

Spain

Finland

1986

Japan

Armenia

India

South Korea
Spain

Belgium

USA

TaiwanRussiaSwitzerland

2009
1987
1989
1995
2015

UK

1997

FinlandRomania

2009

Bulgaria

Canada1994

Hungary

Germany

BrazilTaiwanSlovakia

Pakistan

MexicoJapanSouth Africa

Mexico

1989
1988

1998
2015

Romania

Argentina

PakistanSouth Africa

Argentina

China

2018

Iran

India

2011

Slovenia
Netherlands
Armenia80
2005

Czech RepublicCzech Rep.

70

1990
1989

Netherlands

1986

Brazil

2001

Iran

2017

Source: IAEA-PRIS, 2019

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 34

OPERATION, POWER GENERATION,
AGE DISTRIBUTION
Since the first nuclear power reactor was connected to the Soviet power grid at Obninsk in
1954, there have been two major waves of startups. The first peaked in 1974, with 26 gridconnections in that year. The second reached a historic maximum in 1984 and 1985, just before
the Chernobyl accident, reaching 33 grid connections in each year. By the end of the 1980s,
the uninterrupted net increase of operating units had ceased, and in 1990 for the first time
the number of reactor closures24 outweighed the number of startups. The 1991–2000 decade
produced far more startups than closures (52/30), while in the decade 2001–2010, startups did
not match closures (32/35). Furthermore, after 2000, it took a whole decade to connect as many
units as in a single year in the middle of the 1980s. Between 2011 and mid-2019, the startup of
56 reactors—of which 35 (almost two thirds) in China alone—outpaced by six the closure of
Figure 5 | Nuclear Power Reactor Grid Connections and Closures in the World

Reactor Startups and Closures in the Worldin Units, from 1954 to 1 July 2019

Reactor Startups

30

YearlyBalance25© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Reactor Closures

20
15
10
5

0 1954

1960

1965

1970

1975

1980

1985

1990

1995

2000

2005

2010

2015

2019

-5
-10
-15
-20
-25

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

Notes
As of 2019, WNISR is using the term “Closed” instead of “Permanent Shutdown” for reactors that have ceased power production, as WNISR considers thereactors closed as of the date of their last production. Although this definition is not new, it had not been applied to all reactors or fully reflected in the
WNISR database; this applies to known/referenced examples like Superphénix in France, which had not produced in the two years before it was officiallyclosed or the Italian reactors that were de facto closed prior to the referendum in 1987, or some other cases. Those changes obviously affect many of the
Figures relating to the world nuclear reactor fleet (Startup and Closures, Evolution of world fleet, Age of closed reactors, amongst others.)

24 - With WNISR2019 we are introducing “closure” as general term for permanent shutdown, in order to avoid confusion with the useof “shutdown” for provisional grid disconnections for maintenance, refueling, upgrading or due to incidents. WNISR considers closure
from the moment of grid disconnection—and not from the moment of the industrial, political or economic decision—and as the units
have not generated power for several years, in WNISR statistics, they are closed in the year of their latest power generation.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 35

50 units over the same period. As there were no closures in China over the period, the
50 closures outside China were only met by 21 startups, a startling decline by 29 units over theperiod. (See Figure 5).
After the startup of 10 reactors in each of the years 2015 and 2016, only four units started up in
2017, of which three in China and one in Pakistan (built by Chinese companies). In 2018, ninereactors generated power for the first time, of which seven in China and one each in Russia
and South Korea, while three units were closed, of which two in Russia and one in the U.S.
(See Figure 6).
Figure 6 | Nuclear Power Reactor Grid Connections and Closures – The Continuing China Effect

Reactor Startups and Closures in the Worldin Units, from 1954 to 1 July 201930

Reactor Startups
China
Rest of the World

25

Reactor Closures
All Countries (No Chinese in Total)

20© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

15
10
5

0

1954

1960

1965

1970

1975

1980

1985

1990

1995

2000

2005

2010

2015

2019

-5
-10
-15
-20
-25

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

In the first half of 2019, four reactors started up in the world, two of which were in
China (Taishan‑2, Yangjiang‑6) and one each in Russia (Novovoronezh 2-2) andSouth Korea (Shin‑Kori‑4), while one unit was closed in the U.S. (Pilgrim‑1).
As of mid-August 2019, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) continues to count
37 units in Japan (five less than in mid-2018) in its total number of 451 reactors “in operation” inthe world (two less than mid-2018)25; yet no nuclear electricity was generated in Japan between
September 2013 and August 2015, and as of 1 July 2019, only nine reactors were operating(see Japan Focus). Nuclear plants provided only 6.2 percent of the electricity in Japan in 2018.

25 - IAEA, “Power Reactor Information System”, International Atomic Energy Agency, Undated,
see https://pris.iaea.org/pris/CountryStatistics/CountryDetails.aspx?current=JP, accessed 28 July 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

The WNISR reiterates its call for an appropriate reflection in world nuclear statistics of theunique situation in Japan. The attitude taken by the IAEA, the Japanese government, utilities,
industry and many research bodies as well as other governments and organizations to continue
considering the entire stranded reactor fleet in the country as “in operation” or “operational”
is misleading.
The IAEA actually does have a reactor-status category called “Long-term Shutdown” or LTS.26
Under the IAEA’s definition, a reactor is considered in LTS, if it has been shut down for an“extended period (usually more than one year)”, and in early period of shutdown either restart
is not being “aggressively pursued” or “no firm restart date or recovery schedule has been
established”. The IAEA currently lists zero reactors anywhere in the LTS category.
The IAEA criteria are vague and hence subject to arbitrary interpretation. What exactly
are extended periods? What is aggressively pursuing? What is a firm restart date or recovery
schedule? Faced with this dilemma, the WNISR team in 2014 decided to create a new category
with a simple definition, based on empirical fact, without room for speculation: “Long‑term
Outage” or LTO. Its definition:
A nuclear reactor is considered in Long-term Outage or LTO if it has not generated any
electricity in the previous calendar year and in the first half of the current calendar year. It iswithdrawn from operational status retroactively from the day it has been disconnected fromthe grid.

When subsequently the decision is taken to close a reactor, the closure status starts with the
day of the last electricity generation, and the WNISR statistics are retroactively modified
accordingly.
Applying this definition to the world nuclear reactor fleet, as of 1 July 2019, leads toclassifying 28 units in LTO—all considered “in operation” by the IAEA—four fewer than in
WNISR2018, of which 24 in Japan, and one each in Canada, China, South Korea and Taiwan.
Four reactors restarted from LTO since mid-2018, two in India (Kakrapar-1 and -2) and one
each in Argentina (Embalse) and France (Paluel-2). Three reactors, two in Japan (Genkai-2,
Onagawa-1) and one in Taiwan (Chinshan-1), moved from LTO to closed.
For years, WNISR has considered all ten Fukushima reactors closed. In July 2019, operator
Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) finally officialized the closure and announced plans
to decommission the four Fukushima Daini reactors (see Table 5 and Annex 3 for a detailed
overview of the status of the Japanese nuclear fleet).
As of 1 July 2019, a total of 417 nuclear reactors were operating in 31 countries, up four units
from the situation in July 201827. The current world fleet has a total nominal electric net
capacity of 370 GW, up by 6.7 GW (+1.9 percent) from one year earlier (see Figure 7). While thenumber of operating reactors remains below the figure reached in 1989 and nuclear electricity
generation is still a few percent below the 2006 peak, this is a new historic maximum for
operating capacity.

26 - See IAEA Glossary, at www.iaea.org/pris/Glossary.aspx, accessed 1 July 2016.
27 - +8 startups +4 restarts –3 new LTOs –5 closures| 36

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 37Figure 7 | World Nuclear Reactor Fleet, 1954–2019

Nuclear Reactors and Net Operating Capacity in the World
2006
367 GWein Units and GWe, from 1954 to 1 July 20191989
310 GWe
418 Reactors

7/2019Maximum Operating
Capacity: 370 GWe
417 Reactors

2002
438 Reactors

GWe

Reactors in Operation

400

Operating Capacity© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

300

200

100

GW1954

1960

1965

1970

1975

1980

1985

1990

1995

2000

2005

2010

2015

7/20190

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

Note
Changes in the database regarding closing dates of reactors or LTO status slightly change the shape of this graph from previous editions. In particular, theprevious “maximum operating capacity” of 2006 (overtaken in July 2019) is now at 367 GW.

For many years, the net installed capacity has continued to increase more than the net
number of operating reactors. In 1989, the average size of an operational nuclear reactor
was about 740 MW, while that number has increased to almost 890 MW in 2019. This is a
result of the combined effects of larger units replacing smaller ones and technical alterations
to raise capacity at existing plants resulting in larger electricity output, a process known
as uprating.28 In the United States alone, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has
approved 164 uprates since 1977. The cumulative approved uprates in the U.S. total 7.9 GW, theequivalent of eight large reactors.29 No additional uprates were approved since April 2018 andthere are no pending applications as of mid-2019. However, four additional applications are
expected during the rest of the year.
A similar trend of uprates and major overhauls in view of lifetime extensions of existing
reactors has been seen in Europe. The main incentive for lifetime extensions is economic
but this argument is being increasingly challenged as backfitting costs soar and alternatives
become cheaper.

28 - Increasing the capacity of nuclear reactors by equipment upgrades e.g. more powerful steam generators or turbines.
29 - U.S.NRC, “Approved Applications for Power Uprates”, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Updated 2 April 2019,see http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/power-uprates/status-power-apps/approved-applications.html, accessed
12 August 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 38

OVERVIEW OF CURRENT NEW-BUILD
As of 1 July 2019, 46 reactors are considered here as under construction, the lowest number ina decade, falling for the sixth year in a row—four fewer than WNISR reported a year ago, and22 fewer than in 2013 (five of these units have already subsequently been abandoned). Three infour reactors are built in Asia and Eastern Europe. In total, 16 countries are building nuclear
plants, one more (U.K.) than reported in WNISR2018 (see Table 1).
Five building projects were launched in 2018, one each in Bangladesh, Russia, South Korea,
Turkey and the U.K. In the first half of 2019, only one project started construction in the world,
in Russia. Russian companies are also building the reactors in Bangladesh and Turkey, Russia istherefore involved in four of these six projects launched since the beginning of 2018.
The figure of 46 reactors listed as under construction by mid-2019 compares poorly with a peakof 234—totaling more than 200 GW—in 1979. However, many (48) of those projects listed
in 1979 were never finished (see Figure 8). The year 2005, with 26 units under construction,marked a record low since the early nuclear age in the 1950s. Compared to the situation
described a year ago, the total capacity of units now under construction in the world dropped
again, by 3.9 GW to 44.6 GW, with a rather stable average unit size of 969 MW (see Annex 7
for details).
Figure 8 | Nuclear Reactors “Under Construction” in the World (as of 1 July 2019)

Reactors Under Construction in the Worldin Units, from 1951 to 1 July 2019234

Construction Status
as of 1 July 2019
Construction Abandoned or Suspended

48

200

Construction Completed or Underway
Construction Starts
150© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting
186

100
68

50

39

65

22

0 1951

1955

1960

1965

1970

49
46

44

1975

1980

1985

15
1990

1995

2000

2005

2010

10

3 5
2015

1
19

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 39

Table 1 | Nuclear Reactors “Under Construction” (as of 1 July 2019) 30
Units

Capacity(MW net)Construction
StartsGrid
Connection

Units Behind
Schedule

China

10

8 800

2012 - 20172020 - 2023

2-3

India

7

4 824

2004 - 20172019 - 2023

5

Russia5

3 379

2007 - 20192019 - 2023

3

UAE

4

5 380

2012 - 20152020 - 2023

4

South Korea

4

5 360

2012 - 20182019 - 2024

4

Belarus2

2 218

2013 - 20142019 - 2020

1-2

Bangladesh

2

2 160

2017 - 20182023 - 20240

Slovakia

2

880

1985

2020 - 2021

2

USA

2

2 234

2013

2021 - 2022

2

Pakistan2

2 028

2015 - 20162020 - 2021

0

Japan

1

1 325

2007

?

1

Argentina

1

25

2014

2021

1

UK

1

1 630

2018

2025

0

Finland

1

1 600

2005

2020

1

France

1

1 600

2007

2022

1

Turkey

1

1 114

2018

2024

0

Total

46

44 557

1985 - 20192019 - 2025

27-29

Country

NoteThis table does not contain suspended or abandoned constructions.

30 - For further details, see Annex 7.

Sources: Compiled by WNISR. 2019

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 40

CONSTRUCTION TIMESCONSTRUCTION TIMES OF REACTORSCURRENTLY UNDER CONSTRUCTION
A closer look at projects presently listed as “under construction” illustrates the level of
uncertainty and problems associated with many of these projects, especially given that mostbuilders assume a five-year construction period to begin with:
ɆɆ As of 1 July 2019, the 46 reactors being built have been under construction for an average of
6.7 years, and many remain far from completion.
ɆɆ All reactors under construction in at least half of the 16 countries have experienced mostly
year-long delays. At least 27 (59 percent) of the building projects are delayed. Most of theunits which are nominally being built on-time were begun within the past three years or
have not yet reached projected startup dates, making it difficult to assess whether or notthey are on schedule. Particular uncertainty remains over construction sites in Belarus,
China and UAE.
ɆɆ Of the 27 reactors clearly documented as behind schedule, at least eleven have reported
increased delays and five have reported new delays over the past year since WNISR2018.
ɆɆ WNISR2017 noted a total of 19 reactors scheduled for startup in 2018, one of these started
up already in 2017. At the beginning of 2018, 15 reactors were still scheduled for startup
during the year, but only nine made it, while the others were delayed at least into 2019.
ɆɆ Construction on two projects started over 30 years ago, Mochovce‑3 and ‑4 in Slovakia, andtheir startup has been further delayed, currently to 2020–21.
ɆɆ Four reactors have been listed as “under construction” for a decade or more: the Prototype
Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) in India, the Olkiluoto-3 reactor project in Finland, Shimane‑3
in Japan and the French Flamanville-3 unit. The Finnish, French and Indian projects havebeen further delayed this year, and the Japanese one does not even have a provisional
startup date.
The actual lead time for nuclear plant projects includes not only the construction itself but
also lengthy licensing procedures in most countries, complex financing negotiations, site
preparation and other infrastructure development. As the U.K.’s Hinkley Point C projectillustrates, a significant share of investment and work was carried out before even entering theofficial construction phase (see United Kingdom Focus).

CONSTRUCTION TIMES OF PAST AND
CURRENTLY OPERATING REACTORS
There has been a clear global trend towards increasing construction times. National building
programs were faster in the early years of nuclear power. As Figure 9 illustrates, construction
times of reactors completed in the 1970s and 1980s were quite homogenous, while in the past
two decades they have varied widely.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 41

Figure 9 | Average Annual Construction Times in the World

Average Annual Construction Times in the World from 1954 to 1 July 2019

Duration in Years

by Grid Connection Date

16
Number of Reactors

14
12

1

5

10

20

30

10
8
6
4
2
© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

1954

1960

1965

1970

1975

1980

1990

1985

1995

2000

2005

2010

2015

0

7/19

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

The seven units completed in 2018 by the Chinese nuclear industry averaged 7.7 years ofconstruction time, while the two Russian projects took a mean 22.3 years to connect to thegrid, with Rostov-4 taking 35 years to finally generate power (see The Construction Saga of
Rostov Reactors 3 and 4) and Leningrad 2-1 close to 10 years. The mean construction time forthe nine reactors started up in 2018 was 10.9 years.
Figure 10 | Delays for Units Started Up 2018-2019
Expected Construction Time vs. Real Construction Time for Startups 2018-2019
in Years
China
Haiyang-1
Haiyang-2
Sanmen-1
Sanmen-2
Taishan-1
Taishan-2
Tianwan-4
Yangjiang-5
Yangjiang-6
South Korea
Shin-Kori-4
RussiaLeningrad 2-1
Novovoronezh 2-2
Rostov-4

8.9
8.3
9.2
8.7
8.7
9.2

Construction Suspension
Delay

5.1
4.7
5.5

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

9.6
9.4
9.8
0

Note

Expected Construction Time

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Sources: WNISR with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

Expected construction time is based on grid connection data provided at construction start when available; alternatively best estimates are used, based oncommercial operation, completion, or commissioning information.

There is only one unit that in the past 18 months started up on time, and that is Tianwan‑4
in China, a Russian-designed but mainly Chinese-built VVER-1000 (model V-428M), that

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 42

the designers claim to belong to Gen-III, but few details are known. The two Chinese units
Yangjiang-5 and -6 were completed with minor delays in 4.7 and 5.5 years respectively. These
are ACPR-1000 reactors, designed by China General Nuclear Corp. (CGN) that it claims
contain at least ten improvements making them a Gen-III design.31 Leaving the epic Rostov-4
case aside, the other six units that started up in China (four AP‑1000s, two EPRs), the two in
Russia and the one in South Korea all experienced years-long delays and roughly doubled theirrespective planned construction time to 8.3–9.8 years (see Figure 10).
The longer-term perspective confirms that short construction times remain the exceptions.
Nine countries completed 63 reactors over the past decade—of which 37 in China alone—afteran average construction time of 9.8 years (see Table 2), a slight improvement over the decade
2008–mid-2018 with 10.1 years.
Table 2 | Reactor Construction Times 2009–mid-2019
Construction Times of 63 Units Started-up 2009–7/2019
Country

Units

Construction Time (in Years)
Mean Time

Minimum

Maximum

China

37

6.0

4.1

11.2

Russia

8

22.2

8.1

35.0

South Korea

6

6.0

4.1

9.6

India

5

9.8

7.2

14.2

Pakistan

3

5.4

5.2

5.6

Argentina

1

33.0

33.0

Iran

1

36.3

36.3

Japan

1

5.1

5.1

USA

1

43.5

43.5

World

63

9.8

4.1

43.5

Sources: Compiled by WNISR. 201931 - Caroline Peachey, “Chinese reactor design evolution”, Nuclear Engineering International, 22 May 2014,see https://www.neimagazine.com/features/featurechinese-reactor-design-evolution-4272370/, accessed 14 August 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 43

CONSTRUCTION STARTS
AND CANCELLATIONSThe number of annual construction starts32 in the world peaked in 1976 at 44, of which
12 projects were later abandoned. In 2010, there were 15 construction starts—including 10 in
China alone—the highest level since 1985 (see Figure 11). That number dropped to five in 2017
and five in 2018. The construction starts in 2018 were unusually diverse as one each took placein Bangladesh, Russia, South Korea, Turkey and U.K. Also, with Bangladesh and Turkey, thelist contains two newcomer countries. In both countries, the projects are implemented by the
Russian nuclear industry. In Turkey work started at the Akkuyu site, a project that has been
proposed since the 1970s. As of mid-2019, only one project got officially underway in the world
so far this year, Kursk 2-2 in Russia.
Figure 11 | Construction Starts in the World

Construction Starts of Nuclear Reactors in the Worldin Units, from 1951 to 1 July 201944

Construction Status
as of 1 July 2019
Under Construction
Construction Completed

12

40

30

Construction Abandoned or Suspended

32© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

20
15
10

10

8
5

0 1951

1
1955

1960

1965

1970

1975

1980

1985

1990

1995

2000

2005

2010

2015

19

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

Seriously affected by the Fukushima events, China did not start any construction in 2011 and2014 and began work only on seven units in between. While Chinese utilities started building
six more units in 2015, the number shrank to two in 2016, only a demonstration fast reactor
in 2017, none in 2018 and none in 2019 as of mid-year (see Figure 12). In other words, since
December 2016, China has not started building any new commercial reactors. According tomedia reports, three construction starts got government approval and could take place later in
2019. While this development would mean a restart of commercial reactor building in China,
for the time being, the level remains far below expectations. The five-year plan 2016–2020 had
fixed a target of 58 GW operating and 30 GW under construction by 2020. As of mid-2019,
China had 45.5 GW operating and 9 GW under construction, far from the original target.
Over the decade 2009–2018, construction began on 71 reactors in the world (of which five havebeen cancelled). That is more than in the decade 1999–2008, when work started on 45 units
32 - Generally, a reactor is considered under construction when the base slab of the reactor building is being concreted. Site
preparation work, excavation and other infrastructure developments are not included.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 44(of which three have been abandoned). With 49 units China holds the lion’s share of the
116 building starts over the past two decades (see Figure 12).
In addition, past experience shows that simply having an order for a reactor, or even having a
nuclear plant at an advanced stage of construction, is no guarantee of ultimate grid connection
and power production. The abandonment of the two V.C. Summer units at the end of July 2017
after four years of construction and following multi-billion-dollar investment is only the latest
example in a long list of failed nuclear power plant projects.
Figure 12 | Construction Starts in the World/China

Construction Starts of Nuclear Reactors in the Worldin Units, from 1951 to 1 July 2019

44

40

China
Other countries
30© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

20
15
10

10
5

0 1951

1955

1960

1965

1970

1975

1980

1985

1990

1995

2000

2005

2010

10

8
6
22
2015

1

5
1
19

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

French Alternative Energies & Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) statistics through 2002
indicate 253 “cancelled orders” in 31 countries, many of them at an advanced construction
stage. The United States alone accounted for 138 of these order cancellations.33
Of the 766 reactor constructions launched since 1951, at least 94 units—12 percent or one
in eight—in 20 countries had been abandoned as of 1 July 2019. The past decade shows anabandoning rate of one-in-fourteen—as five in 71 building sites officially started during that
period were later given up at various stages of advancement (see also Figure 13).
Close to three-quarters (66 units) of all cancelled projects were in four countries alone—the
U.S. (42), Russia (12), Germany and Ukraine (six each). Some units were actually 100 percent
completed—including Kalkar in Germany and Zwentendorf in Austria—before the decision
was taken not to operate them.

33 - CEA, “Elecnuc—Nuclear Power Plants in the World”, French Alternatives Energies and Atomic Energy Commission, 2002.
The section “cancelled orders” has disappeared after the 2002 edition.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 45

Figure 13 | Cancelled or Suspended Reactor Constructions

Abandoned Reactor Constructions from 1970 to 1 July 2019
in Units by Cancellation Year and Country
Japan - 1
N. Korea - 1
Philippines - 1
Taïwan - 2
Iran - 1
Russia - 12
Ukraine - 6
Lithuania - 1
Poland - 2
Bulgaria - 2
Romania - 3
Czech Rep. - 2
Austria - 1
Germany - 6
Italy - 3
Spain - 4
Sweden - 1
Cuba - 2
Brazil - 1
USA - 421970

Total - 94

1

1980

1975

2 2

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting1985

2 5 11 5 13

3

1990

1995

2000

9 3 12 3 2 9North America

Latin America

2010

2005

1

1

Europe2015 17

1 3 1 2 1

2

Asia and Middle East

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

Note: This graph only includes constructions that had officially started with the concreting of the base slab of the reactor building.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 46

OPERATING AGE
In the absence of significant new-build and grid connection over many years, the averageage (from grid connection) of operating nuclear power plants has been increasing steadily
and at mid-2019, for the first time, is exceeding 30 years (30.1 years), up from 29.9 a year ago(see Figure 14).34 A total of 272 reactors, two-thirds of the world fleet, have operated for 31 ormore years, including 80 (19 percent) reaching 41 years or more.
Figure 14 | Age Distribution of Operating Reactors in the WorldAge of World Nuclear Fleet
as of 1 July 2019

Reactor Age

192

0–10 Years
11–20 Years
21–30 Years
31–40 Years
41 Years and Over

52
32

61

417 Reactors
Mean Age30.1 Years

80

50 Number of Reactors
by Age Class© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

Some nuclear utilities envisage average reactor lifetimes of beyond 40 years up to 60 and even
80 years. In the United States, reactors are initially licensed to operate for 40 years, but nuclear
operators can request a license renewal from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for
an additional 20 years.
As of 4 May 2018, 85 of the then 99 operating U.S. units had received an extension, withanother four applications for five reactors under NRC review. Since WNISR2018, four license
renewals for five reactors were granted, one expected submission (Perry-1) was cancelled, twounits with renewed licenses were closed, and two additional applications for three reactors are
expected in 2021–22.35
In the U.S., only four of the 36 units—one in nine—that have been closed had reached 40 years
on the grid—Vermont Yankee was closed in December 2014 at the age of 42; Fort Calhounin October 2016 after 43 years of operation; Oyster Creek, the oldest U.S. reactor, in
September 2018 at 49 years; and Pilgrim in May 2019 at 47 years. All four had obtained licenses
to operate up to 60 years but were closed mainly for economic reasons. In other words, at least
a quarter of the reactors connected to the grid in the U.S. never reached their initial design
34 - WNISR calculates reactor age from grid connection to final disconnection from the grid. In WNISR statistics, “startup” issynonymous with grid connection and “closure” with withdrawal from the grid. In previous editions of the WNISR, the reactor age wasautomatically rounded to the year. In order to have a better image of the fleet and ease calculations, the age of a reactor is considered tobe 1 between the first and second grid connection anniversaries. For some calculations, we also use operating years: the reactor is in its
first operating year until the first grid connection anniversary, when it enters the second operating year.
35 - U.S.NRC, “Status of License Renewal Applications and Industry Activities”, Updated 13 March 2019,see http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications.html, accessed 14 August 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 47

lifetime of 40 years. On the other hand, of the 97 currently operating plants, 46 units haveoperated for 41 years or more; thus, half of the units with license renewals have already entered
the life extension period, and that share is growing rapidly with the mid-2019 mean age of the
U.S. operational fleet at 38.9 years (see United States Focus - Figure 32).
Many countries have no specific time limits on operating licenses. In France, where thecountry’s first operating Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) started up in 1977, reactors must
undergo in-depth inspection and testing every decade against reinforced safety requirements.
The French reactors have operated for 34.4 years on average, and most of them have completed
the process with the French Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN) evaluating each reactor allowing
them to operate for up to 40 years, which is the limit of their initial design age. However,the ASN assessments are years behind schedule. For economic reasons, the French utility
Électricité de France (EDF) clearly prioritizes lifetime extension to 50 years over large-scale
new-build. EDF’s approach to lifetime extension is still under review by ASN’s TechnicalSupport Organization. ASN plans to provide its opinion on the general assessment outline by
2020. This is particularly critical for Tricastin-1, the first unit to undergo the fourth decennial
review scheduled to begin in 2019. In addition, lifetime extension beyond 40 years requires
site-specific public inquiries in France.
Recently commissioned reactors and the ones under construction in South Korea do or will
have a 60-year operating license from the start. EDF will certainly also aim for a 60-year
license for its Hinkley Point C units in the U.K.
In assessing the likelihood of reactors being able to operate for 50 or 60 years, it is useful
to compare the age distribution of reactors that are currently operating with those that havealready closed (see Figure 14 and Figure 15). The age structure of the 181 units already closed(eight more than one year ago) completes the picture. In total, 66 of these units operated for
31 years or more, and of those, 24 reactors operated for 41 years or more. Many units of thefirst-generation designs only operated for a few years. Considering that the average age of the
Figure 15 | Age Distribution of Closed Nuclear Power Reactors

Age of Closed Nuclear Reactors in the World
as of 1 July 2019

Reactor Age

58
42

29

28

0–10 Years
11–20 Years
21–30 Years
31–40 Years
41 Years and Over

181 Reactors
Mean Age25.8 Years

24

50 Number of Reactors
by Age Class© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 48

closed units is 25.8 years, plans to stretch the operational lifetime of large numbers of units to
40 years and far beyond seemed rather optimistic.
To be sure, the operating time prior to closure has clearly increased continuously. But while
the average age of reactors closed in the world in a given year got close to 40 years, it passed it
only twice so far: in 2016, with two reactors shutting down at ages 43 (Fort Calhoun, U.S.) and45 (Novovoronezh, Russia) respectively and in 2018 with Oyster Creek, the oldest U.S. reactor
closing at 49 years, as well as Leningrad-1 at 45 and Bilibino at 44 in Russia (see Figure 16).
Figure 16 | Nuclear Reactor Closure Age 1963 – 1 July 2019

Evolution of Nuclear Reactors' Average Closure Age 1963 – 1 July 2019by Closure YearAge in Years
50

50
45
40

Number of Reactors

1

2

5

12

45
40

25

35

35

30

30

25

25

20

20

15

15

10

10
5

5
0
1963

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

0
1970

1980

1990

2000

2010

2019

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA‑PRIS, 2019As a result of the Fukushima nuclear disaster, questions have been raised about the wisdomof operating older reactors. The Fukushima Daiichi units (1 to 4) were connected to thegrid between 1971 and 1974. The license for unit 1 had been extended for another 10 years in
February 2011, a month before the catastrophe began. Four days after the accidents in Japan,
the German government ordered the closure of eight reactors that had started up before 1981,
two of which were already closed at the time and never restarted. The sole selection criterion
was operational age. Other countries did not adopt the same approach, but it is clear that the
3/11 events had an impact on previously assumed extended lifetimes in other countries as well,including in Belgium, Switzerland and Taiwan. Some of the main nuclear countries closed
their respective oldest unit long before age 50, including Germany at age 33, South Korea at 40,
Sweden at 46 and the U.S. at 49. France has scheduled to close its two oldest units in spring2020 at age 43.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 49

LIFETIME PROJECTIONS
Many countries continue to implement or prepare for lifetime extensions. As in previous
years, WNISR has therefore created two lifetime projections. A first scenario (40-Year
Lifetime Projection, see Figure 17), assumes a general lifetime of 40 years for worldwide
operating reactors—not including reactors in Long-Term Outage (LTO). The 40-year number
corresponds to the design lifetimes of most operating reactors. Some countries have legislationor policy (Belgium, South Korea, Taiwan) in place that limit operating lifetime to for all or partof the fleet to 40 or 50 years.
For the 85 reactors that have passed the 40-year lifetime, we assume they will operate to theend of their licensed, extended operating time.
A second scenario (Plant Life Extension or PLEX Projection, see Figure 18) takes into accountall already-authorized lifetime extensions.
Figure 17 | The 40-Year Lifetime Projection (not including LTOs)

Projection 2019-2065 of Nuclear Reactor/Capacity in the World
General assumption of 40-year mean lifetime
Operating and Under Construction as of 1 July 2019, in GWe and Units
Capacity in GWe

YearlyBalance

10

Reactor Startups
Reactor Closures

50

Number ofReactors
15

Capacity Added
Capacity Closed

105© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting
2020

2025

2030

2035

2040

2045

2050

2055

2060

2065

-5

-5

-10

-10

-15

-15

-20
-25
-30

20192020–14 Reactors–9.5 GW

2021-2030–188 reactors–165.5 GW

Notes pertaining to Figures 17–19:

2031-2040–82 Reactors–71 GW

2041-2050–27 Reactors–21 GW

2051-2065–101 reactors–98.5 GW
Sources: Various sources, compiled by WNISR, 2019

The number of startups in 2019 includes two reactors in LTO that were restarted during the first half-year 2019. Restart and closure of 28 reactors in LTO asof 1 July 2019 are not represented here.
The 60-year license for six APR1400 reactors in South Korea, of which two, Shin-Kori-3 & -4, are already in operation, and four under construction, is not
represented here. The Figures do not take into account either the expected closure at age 30 of the three remaining Wolsong reactors (see South Korea Focus,
Table 6).
The Figures take into account “early retirements” of 10 reactors, while some of them are likely to be cancelled (see United States Focus, Table 8) and others
might be added.
In the case of French reactors that have reached 40 years of operation prior to 2019, we use the limit date for their 4th periodic safety review (visite décennale)
as closing date in the 40-year projection. For those that will reach 40 years of operation in 2019 or 2020, the date of their 4th periodic safety review is used in
the PLEX Projection.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 50

The lifetime projections allow for an evaluation of the number of plants and respective power
generating capacity that would have to come online over the next decades to offset closuresand simply maintain the same number of operating plants and capacity. With all units underconstruction scheduled to have started up, installed nuclear capacity would still decrease by
9.5 GW by 2020. In total, 14 additional reactors (compared to the end of 2018 status) would
have to be started up or restarted prior to the end of 2020 in order to maintain the status quoof operating units. Compared to the situation in 2014, the number of additional units necessary
to break even by 2020 shrank by 16. In fact, construction started on 25 units between 2014
and mid-2019, and Japan restarted nine reactors (none were operating in 2014). The additional
capacity needed to maintain the status quo by 2020 increased though by 2 GW.
In the following decade to 2030, 188 additional new reactors (165.5 GW) would have to beconnected to the grid to maintain the status quo, 3.2 times the rate achieved over the past
decade (59 startups between 2009 and 2018). The situation is identical to 2014, when thecorresponding projections for 2021–2030 indicated a need for an equal number of additional
reactors, though with a higher total capacity of 178 GW.
The potential stabilization of the situation by 2020 will depend on the number of Japanese andother reactors currently in LTO coming back online, as it is technically impossible to start andcomplete construction of any additional new plant in a year.
As a result, the number of reactors in operation will probably more or less stagnate at best,
unless—beyond restarts—lifetime extensions far beyond 40 years become widespread. Such
generalized lifetime extensions are the objective of the nuclear power industry, and, especiallyin the U.S., there are numerous more or less successful attempts to obtain subsidies for
uneconomic nuclear plants (see detailed analysis in United States Focus).
Figure 18 | The PLEX Projection (not including LTOs)

Projection 2019-2065 of Nuclear Reactor/Capacity in the World
General assumption of 40-year mean lifetime + Authorized Lifetime Extensions
Operating and Under Construction as of 1 July 2019, in GWe and Units
Number ofReactors

Capacity in GWe
15

YearlyBalance

10

Reactor Startups
Reactor Closures

5

15

Capacity Added
Capacity Closed

105© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting
2020

2025

2030

2035

2040

2045

2050

2055

2060

2065

0

-5

-5

-10

-10

-15

-15

-20
-25

2018
-2020
+5 Reactor+7 GW

2021-2030–153 reactors–125 GW

2031-2040–97 Reactors–83 GW

2041-2050–66 Reactors–66 GW

2051-2063–101 reactors–98.5 GW

Sources: Various sources, compiled by WNISR, 2019

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 51

Developments in Asia, and particularly in China, do not fundamentally change the global
picture. Reported figures for China’s 2020 target for installed nuclear capacity have fluctuatedbetween 40 GW and 120 GW in the past. The freezes of construction initiation for almost
two years and of new siting authorizations for four years have significantly reduced Chinese
ambitions.
Every year, we also model a scenario in which all currently licensed lifetime extensions andlicense renewals (mainly in the United States) are maintained and all construction sites arecompleted. For all other units, we have maintained a 40-year lifetime projection, unless a firm
earlier or later closure date has been announced. By 2020, the net number of operating reactors
would increase by five units, and the installed capacity would grow by 7 GW.
In the following decade to 2030, another 153 new reactors (125 GW) would have to start up
to replace closures. The PLEX-Projection would still mean, in the coming decade, a needto multiply the number of units built over the past decade by 2.6 (see Figure 17, Figure 18,
and the cumulated effect in Figure 19). In the meantime, construction starts have been on adeclining trend for a decade.
Figure 19 | Forty-Year Lifetime Projection versus PLEX Projection

World Nuclear Reactor Fleet
in Units, from July 2019 to 2065
7/2019Composition of World Fleet
400

LTO
Lifetime > 40 Years
Lifetime ≤ 40 Years

300© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

200
100
0

2020

2025

2030

2035

2040

2045

2050

2055

2060

2065

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

Note: All reactors in LTO are shown until they reach age 40, unless they have a license to operate to 60 years, (see Table 27).

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 52

FOCUS COUNTRIES
These “quick view”
indicators will be usedin the country sections
throughout the report.

The following chapter provides an in-depth assessment of ten countries: Belgium, China,
France, Finland, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, United Kingdom (U.K.) and the UnitedStates (U.S.). They represent about two thirds of the global reactor fleet (65 percent of theunits and 73 percent of the installed capacity) and six of the world’s ten largest nuclear power
producers. For other countries’ details, see Annex 1.
Unless otherwise noted, data on the numbers of reactors operating and under construction
and their capacity (as of mid-2019) and nuclear’s share in electricity generation are from theInternational Atomic Energy Agency’s Power Reactor Information System (PRIS) online
database.36 Historical maximum figures indicate the year that the nuclear share in the
power generation of a given country was the highest since 1986, the year of the Chernobyl
disaster. Unless otherwise noted, the load factor figures are from Nuclear Engineering
International (NEI).37

BELGIUM FOCUS
Belgium operates seven pressurized-water reactors that have generated 27.3 TWh in 2018,
almost one-third less than the 40.2 TWh in 2017 and a maximum of 46.7 TWh in 1999. Nuclear
power contributed 34 percent of Belgium’s electricity in 2018, while the maximum was almost
double with 67.2 percent in 1986.
Due to continuous technical issues and extended outages, the average load factor of the Belgian
fleet plunged to 48.6 percent in 2018, the second lowest in the world behind Argentina. The
average age of the Belgian fleet is 39.3 years. On average, the seven Belgian units were down
half of the year (see details hereafter) and in October 2018 power prices reached record levels(€205/MWh or US$231/MWh). The “Belgian nuclear crisis” is the title of an Argus White Paper
describing that the lack of power from nuclear reactors led not only to the need for coordinatedsolidarity by neighboring countries to help Belgium with power exports through the winter,but also to strategic reinforcement of energy cooperation, in particular with Germany.38

36 - IAEA-PRIS, “Nuclear Share of Electricity Generation in 2018”, see https://pris.iaea.org/PRIS/WorldStatistics/
NuclearShareofElectricityGeneration.aspx, accessed July 2019.
37 - NEI, “Load factors to end December 2018”, June 2019, Caroline Peachey, personal communication, email dated 10 June 2019.
38 - Argus, “Argus white paper: Belgian nuclear crisis”, October 2018.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 53

Engie-Electrabel, which operates all of the Belgian reactors, stated in January 2019 that 4 GW ofnuclear capacity (Doel-3 and -4, Tihange-2 and -3) will be available in winter 2019–20, and thus
the situation should be less constrained.39
The nuclear capacity constraints in the winter 2018–19 were also seen as a test case, as legally
the country is bound to a nuclear phase-out target of 2025. In January 2003, legislation was
passed that requires the closure of all of Belgium’s nuclear plants after 40 years of operation,so based on their startup dates, plants would be closed progressively between 2015 and 2025
(see Table 3). Practically, however, after lifetime extension to 50 years was granted for threereactors, five of the seven reactors would go offline in the single year of 2025. This represents achallenging policy goal.
In November 2017, the Belgian transmission system operator Elia published a study urging theconstruction of “at least 3.6 GW of new-build adjustable (thermal) capacity” to “cope with theshock of the nuclear exit in 2025”40. The Belgian government confirmed the nuclear phase-out
date, when, on 30 March 2018, it presented the Federal Energy Strategy.
Table 3 | Belgian Nuclear Fleet (as of 1 July 2019)
Load Factor

Net Capacity
(MW)

Grid
Connection

Operating Age(as of 1 July 2019)

End of License(Latest Closure Date)

Doel-1433

28/08/1974

44.8

10-year lifetime extension
to 15 February 2025

30.9

83

Doel-2433

21/08/1975

43.9

10-year lifetime extension
to 1 December 2025

38.9

82.2

Doel-3

1 006

23/06/1982

37.0

1 October 2022

42.6

78.0

Doel-4

1 038

08/04/1985

34.2

1 July 2025

60.6

82.8

Tihange-1

962

07/03/1975

44.3

10-year lifetime extension
to 1 October 2025

90.6

81.1

Tihange-2

1 008

13/10/1982

36.7

1 February 2023

62

80.9

Tihange-3

1 038

15/06/1985

34.0

1 September 2025

24.4

86.0

Reactor2018

Lifetime

41

Sources: WNISR, NEI, 2019; Belgian Law of 28 June 2015; Electrabel/GDF-Suez, 201539 - ENGIE, “Sécurité d’approvisionnement : Electrabel actualise le planning de maintenance de ses unités nucléaires jusqu’en 2022”,
28 January 2019 (in French), see https://corporate.engie-electrabel.be/fr/actualite/securite-dapprovisionnement-electrabel-actualise-leplanning-de-maintenance-de-ses-unites-nucleaires-jusquen-2022/, accessed 27 May 2019.
40 - Elia, “Electricity Scenarios for Belgium Towards 2050–Elia’s Quantified Study on the Energy Transition in 2030 and 2040”,
November 2017, see http://www.elia.be/~/media/files/Elia/About-Elia/Studies/20171114_ELIA_4584_AdequacyScenario.pdf, accessed
1 August 2019.
41 - Moniteur Belge, “Loi modifiant la loi du 31 janvier 2003 sur la sortie progressive de l’énergie nucléaire à des fins de productionindustrielle d’électricité afin de garantir la sécurité d’approvisionnement sur le plan énergétique”, N.174, Second Edition, 6 July 2015
(in French and Dutch), see http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/mopdf/2015/07/06_2.pdf.
• For Doel-1&-2, see Electrabel, GDF Suez/Engie, “Note de Presse—Sécurité d’approvisionnement et transition énergétique—Accord
sur la prolongation de Doel 1 et Doel 2”, Press Release, 1 December 2015 (in French), see corporate.engie-electrabel.be/wp-content/
uploads/2016/03/note-de-presse-prolongation-doel-1-et-doel-2-securite-dapprovisionnement-en-belgique-fr-def.pdf, and Engie
Electrabel, “Doel Nuclear Power Plant—Profile of the 4 units”, Updated 7 August 2017, see http://corporate.engie-electrabel.be/localplayer/nuclear-3/doel/;• For Tihange-1, see Engie/Electrabel, “Tihange”, Undated, see http://corporate.engie-electrabel.be/local-player/nuclear-3/tihange/;
all accessed 23 June 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Hydrogen Crack Indications and Legal Issues
In summer 2012, the operator identified an unprecedented number of hydrogen-induced crack
indications in the pressure vessels of Doel-3 and Tihange-2, with respectively over 8,000
and 2,000—which later increased to over 13,000 and over 3,000 respectively—previously
undetected defects. In spite of widespread concerns, and although no failsafe explanation
about the negative initial fracture-toughness test results was given, on 17 November 2015, theFederal Agency for Nuclear Control (FANC) authorized the restart of Doel-3 and Tihange-2 forthe second time after the original discovery of the defaults (see previous WNISR editions fordetails).
The Belgian government did not wait for the outcome of the Doel-3/Tihange-2 issue anddecided in March 2015 to draft legislation to extend the lifetime of Doel-1 and Doel-2 by ten
years to 2025. The law went into effect on 6 July 2015. The government signed an agreementwith Electrabel on 30 November 2015 that stipulates that the operator will invest €700 million(US$741.2 million) into upgrading of the two units and an annual fee of €20 million(US$21.2 million), which will be paid into the national Energy Transition Fund, set up by thelaw of 28 June 2015. On 22 December 2015, FANC authorized the lifetime extension and restartof Doel-1 and -2.
On 6 January 2016, two Belgian NGOs filed a complaint against the 28 June 2015 law with
the Belgian Constitutional Court, arguing in particular that the lifetime extension had beenauthorized without a legally binding public enquiry. In a 22 June 2017 pre-ruling decision, theCourt addressed a series of questions to the European Court of Justice (ECJ), in particularconcerning the interpretation of the Espoo and Aarhus Conventions, as well as the European
legislation. On 29 November 2018, the ECJ’s Advocate General presented its advice on therequest of the Belgian Constitutional Court concerning the applicability of the EU-Aarhus/
Espoo with regards to the Plant Life Extension or PLEX of Doel-1 and -2 and Tihange-1. In her
advice, the Advocate General clearly states thatthe definition of ‘project’ under Article 1(2)(a) of Directive 2011/92 [Environmental Impact
Assessment Directive] includes the extension by 10 years of the period of industrial
production of electricity by a nuclear power stationand thatpublic participation must take place in accordance with Article 6(4) of Directive 2011/92 as
early as possible, when all options are open, that is to say, before the decision on the extension
is taken. 42

The ECJ is not bound by, but generally follows, the advice of the Advocate General; however,so far, the ECJ did not send a formal opinion to the Belgian Constitutional Court. Should the
ECJ rule in accordance with the Advocate General’s recommendations, this could have major
implications also for past or planned lifetime extensions in other countries.

42 - Court of Justice of the EU, “Opinion of Advocate General Kokott—Inter-Environnement Wallonie ASBL, Bond Beter Leefmilieu
Vlaanderen vzw v. Conseil des ministres, Intervener: Electrabel SA”, Request for a preliminary ruling from the Constitutional Court ofBelgium, Case C‑411/17, Info Curia, Provisional text, 29 November 2018, see http://curia.europa.eu/juris/document/document.jsf?docid=208286&text=&dir=&doclang=EN&part=1&occ=first&mode=DOC&pageIndex=0&cid=7984750, accessed 27 June 2019.

| 54

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Already in November 2015, Greenpeace Belgium had filed a case at the State Council (Conseild’État) on similar grounds. As of mid 2019, both cases are still pending.
In May 2017, FANC announced that a series of ultrasonic inspections on the pressure vesselof Tihange-2 did not show any evolution of the hydrogen flakes, nor any new defects. On thebasis of these results, FANC authorized the restart of the reactor. FANC later admitted thatover 300 additional flaw indications at Doel-3 and 70 additional flaw indications at Tihange-2
exceeded the recording threshold for the first time during re-inspections carried out in 2016
and 2017 respectively. However, FANC concluded that the results were due to evolving complex
inspection techniques rather than physical changes.
The technical assessment of the safety implications of the flaw indications remains the
subject of intense controversy. Several independent safety analysis reports are highly criticalof the restart authorizations. In April 2018, the International Nuclear Risk Assessment
Group (INRAG) stated on Tihange-2 that “the risk of failure of the reactor pressure vessel
is not practically excluded” and requested that “the reactor must therefore be temporarily
shut down”. 43 INRAG is currently in contact with the German government about the safetyassessment of Tihange-2, which will likely turn into an expert opinion exchange in the near
future.
A complaint was filed at the Belgian State Council against the restart of Tihange-2 by the City
Region (Städteregion) Aachen cities in February 2016, joined by some 80 other Dutch, German
and Luxemburg cities. Both cases are still pending. It is unclear when to expect rulings. The
legal consequences of a ruling in favor of the plaintiffs are also uncertain.

Serious Flaws in Reinforced Concrete
In October 2017, Electrabel identified serious flaws in the concrete of a building adjacent to thereactor buildings of Doel-3. These bunkered buildings contain backup systems for the safetyof the facilities and are supposed to withstand impact from outside like an airplane crash.
According to Engie, some of these “anomalies at the reinforcements of the reinforced concrete[were] present since the construction of the building”. 44 Doel-3 was originally expected to be
off‑line for scheduled maintenance for 45 days, however, the outage lasted 302 days.
Similar problems, to varying degrees, have been identified at Tihange-2 and -3, as well as Doel‑4.
Engie first announced that Tihange-3, which was shut down on 30 March 2018 for planned
maintenance and refueling, would restart by 14 May 2018. It suffered subsequent delays, andon 21 September 2018, Engie stated that the Tihange-3 outage was extended to 2 March 2019,
and that the restart of Tihange-2—which was shut down on 19 August 2018—would be delayed
from 31 October 2018 to 1 June 2019.
However, some work at Tihange-3 has been moved to the next scheduled outage and the unit
went back on-line on 1 January 2019, two months earlier than previously announced. The entire
43 - INRAG, “Evaluation of the nuclear risks of the Tihange nuclear power plant 2 — Statement by the international group of experts‘INRAG’”, April 2018 (in German and English), see http://www.inrag.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/01_INRAG-StatementTihange_2018_04_10-ST_ff_final.pdf.
44 - Engie/Electrabel, “Révision en cours dans les centrales de Doel 3 et Tihange 3: réaction d’ENGIE Electrabel à propos de l’article
dans Le Soir ”, 5 July 2018.

| 55

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 56

roof of the bunkered building is now scheduled to be replaced during the outage planned forsummer 2020, which will significantly extend the shutdown.
On the other hand, while the regulator gave the green light on 11 June 201945, the restart of
Tihange-2 was delayed and had been rescheduled several times before finally taking place on
3 July 2019. 46

Performance Assessment
The cumulation of planned outages that were extended repeatedly, plus unexpected outages,
led to an unprecedented annual record. In 2018, the seven Belgian nuclear reactors cumulated
a total of 1,265 outage days, representing an average of six months (181 days) per reactor(see Figure 20), or twice as many as France over the same period (see France Focus). Allof the seven units were offline at some point, with cumulated outages reaching between
31 days (Tihange-1) and 276 days (Tihange-3) per reactor.
Figure 20 | Unavailability of Belgian Nuclear Reactors in 2018 (Cumulated)

Unavailability of Belgian Nuclear Reactors in 2018
Total Unavailabilities in Days per Reactor
In 2018, unavailabilities at zero power affecting the Belgian nuclear fleet reached a total of 1,265 reactor-days,or an average of 180.8 days per reactor.
All of the 7 reactors were affected, with cumulated outages between 31 and 276 days.
Tihange-1

Average total unavailabilities
per reactor: 180.8 days

Doel-4

Planned Outage
Forced Outage

Tihange-2
Doel-3Doel-2Doel-1
Tihange-3
0

50

100
150
200
Cumulated Duration of Unavailability at Zero Power (in Days)

250

300

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Sources: ENTSO-E and Engie Transparency Platforms, 2019

Notes

This graph only compiles outages at zero power, thus excluding all other operational periods with reduced capacity >0 MW. Impact of unavailability on power
production is therefore significantly larger.
“Planned” and “Forced” unavailability as published by ENTSO-E. The Doel-1 unavailability, presented here as forced (according to ENTSO-E) during its
whole duration, is listed as “planned” by ENGIE for 248 days in 2018. See Figure 21 and Figure 22.

45 - AFCN, “L’AFCN approuve le redémarrage de Tihange 2”, Press Release, 11 June 2019 (in French),see https://afcn.fgov.be/fr/actualites/lafcn-approuve-le-redemarrage-de-tihange-2, accessed 11 June 2019.
46 - ENTSO-E, “Unavailability of Production and Generation Units”, 7 July 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 57

Figure 21 | Unavailability of Belgian Nuclear Reactors in 2018 (by Outage Period)

Unavailability of Belgian Nuclear Reactors in 2018

Unavailability Type

Overview of full outages affecting the Belgian nuclear fleet

Planned Outage
Forced Outage

Reactor
Doel-1Doel-2Doel-3Doel-4
Tihange-1
Tihange-2
Tihange-3
01/10
2017

01/01
2018

01/04
2018

01/07
2018

01/10
2018

01/01
2019

01/04
2019

01/07
2019

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Notes

Sources: ENTSO-E and Engie Transparency Platforms, 2019

This graph only compiles outages at zero power, thus excluding all other operational periods with reduced capacity >0 MW. Impact of unavailability on power
production is therefore significantly larger.
“Planned” and “Forced” unavailability as published by ENTSO-E. The Doel-1 unavailability, presented here as forced (according to ENTSO-E) during its
whole duration, is listed as “planned” by ENGIE for 248 days in 2018. See Figure 22.

Lifetime Extensions = Extended Outages?
The Federal Agency for Nuclear Control (FANC) notes in its March 2019 national progress
report on the stress tests of nuclear power plants that review and assessment “progresses
slightly slower than expected”. The reasons indicated are workload related, for both licensee
and regulator, triggered by the “safety events that occurred in 2018” and “by other safety
projects (Long Term Operation of Tihange-1 or Doel-1 and -2) that are resource-intensive forboth organizations.”47 While only three of 365 upgrading actions by the operator were still
outstanding by the end of 2018, the regulator still had to approve and confirm one quarter ofthe global action plan.
On 23 April 2018, Doel-1 was closed following a leak in a back-up pipe on its primary cooling
circuit. This unplanned outage was at first expected to last around 1.5 days, then 6.5 days. But
the damage was worse than anticipated and on 27 April 2018, it was decided to bring forward
an outage originally scheduled to start at the end of May 2018. The outage was to last 154 days,
to 1 October 2018, one month longer than initially predicted. In August 2018, Engie declaredthat “Doel‑1 and -2 are currently in a planned overhaul. This long overhaul was planned inorder to extend the exploitation of the units for ten more years.”48 The Doel‑1 outage turned
from “unplanned” to “planned” and was extended progressively to 318 days (see Figure 22).

47 - FANC, “Belgian Stress Tests—National progress report on the stress tests of nuclear power plants”, March 2019.
48 - Engie, “Adjustment of the revision agenda of the nuclear units—Message to Belga”, Press Release, 31 August 2018,see https://corporate.engie-electrabel.be/news/press-releases/adjustment-of-the-revision-agenda-of-the-nuclear-units/, accessed
2 August 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 58

Figure 22 | The Doel-1 Case

Doel-1: Overhaul Outage Takes Over "Forced" Outage
Number of days of outage
Long-term
Planned Outage
01/12/15 12:53
02/02/16 17:36
29/03/16 20:29
29/06/17 14:28
05/03/18 11:02
Forced Outage
23/04/18 10:20
24/04/18 04:52
24/04/18 10:54
27/04/18 16:00

Rescheduled
Planned Outage

Outage Time to Date
Scheduled Remaining
Outage Time

Rescheduled
Planned Outage
27/04/18 16:00
31/08/18 08:25
13/11/18 20:58
18/12/18 18:52
11/03/19 17:37
11/03/19 22:47

0
23/04/18

50

100

150

200

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

250

300

318 Days

Restarted on 12/03/19
Source: Engie Transparency Platform, 2019

Notes
Overview of subsequent versions of unavailability messages for the Doel-1 “Unplanned Outage” after the discovery of a leak in the emergency cooling water
circuit and the following “Overhaul Outage”. “Planned” and “Forced” outages as declared by ENGIE.

Doel-2 was shut down on 22 May 2018 for backfitting/upgrading for lifetime extension
with a planned restart on 8 October 2018. In reality, the unit went back on‑line only on
4 February 2019.
In most cases it is virtually impossible to identify the precise reasons for extended outages,
as unexpected events interact with regular maintenance, post-3/11 upgrading and measures
aimed at lifetime extensions. Beyond the repair work, additional monitoring is requested by
the regulator on parts that have turned out to be damaged beyond expectation (in both recent
cases, the concrete flaws and emergency cooling circuit leaks).

Compliance Issue Solved
As reported in WNISR2018, on 7 June 2018, the European Commission had decided to send areasoned opinion to Belgium “for not having notified transposition measures required under
the Nuclear Safety Directive (Council Directive 2014/87/Euratom)”. 49 Belgium was given twomonths’ time to reply to the reasoned opinion, as well as to adopt and communicate all thenecessary measures to ensure full and correct transposition of the Directive into national law.
As the Commission considered the elements communicated by Belgium satisfactory, it closed
the case on 7 March 2019.
49 - European Commission, “June infringements package: key decisions. Nuclear safety: Commission calls on Belgium, Poland andSpain to completely transpose EU nuclear safety rules”, 7 June 2018, see https://ec.europa.eu/info/news/june-infringements-packagekey-decisions-nuclear-safety-commission-calls-belgium-poland-and-spain-completely-transpose-eu-nuclear-safety-rules-2018-jun07_en, accessed 2 August 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 59

CHINA FOCUS
China continues to expand its nuclear power sector and now operates the third largest reactor
fleet, behind the United States and France. As of 1 July 2019, China had 47 operating reactors
with a total net capacity of 44.5 GW, and one reactor in Long-Term Outage or LTO. The Chinese
nuclear fleet is very young with an average age of 7.2 years (see Figure 23 and Table 23). In 2018,
nuclear power contributed 277 TWh, which constituted 4.2 percent of all electricity generated
in China, a slight increase from 3.9 percent in 2017. This compares with wind power that
injected 366 TWh and solar 177.5 TWh into the grid respectively.50 In other words, electricity
generated by wind energy alone continues to exceed the nuclear contribution, and solar
energy is rapidly catching up. Wind and solar combined now outproduce nuclear by almosta factor of two. (For more details, see the Nuclear Power vs. Renewable Energy chapter).
In general, the outlook for nuclear power in China appears to be significantly dimmer than it
was just a few years ago. Nuclear Intelligence Weekly (NIW) reports that since 2015,
capital investment in the nuclear sector has been in steady decline and last year [2018]
registered a total of 43.7 billion yuan (US$6.5 billion), down 3.8% from 2017. Investment in
nuclear has been less than in most other power sectors due to the lack of newbuilds.51
Figure 23 | Age Distribution of Chinese Nuclear Fleet

Age of Chinese Fleet
as of 1 July 201937

1 in LTO

0–10 Years
11–20 Years
21–30 Years
50 Number of Reactors
by Age Class

848 Reactors(1 in LTO)
Mean Age
7.2 Years

Reactor Age

3© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

A key reason is the high costs. A former head of the Energy Research Institute (ERI) of the
National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the key state planning agency,
explains that nuclear power “has begun to face price competition, and will certainly face morecompetition in the future”.52

50 - BP, “Statistical Review of World Energy–Workbook”, Statistics Work Book, June 2019, see https://www.bp.com/content/dam/bp/
business-sites/en/global/corporate/xlsx/energy-economics/statistical-review/bp-stats-review-2019-all-data.xlsx, accessed 11 June 2019.
51 - C. F. Yu, “State Council Close to Approving Hualong-One Projects”, NIW, 1 February 2019.
52 - Peter Fairley, “China’s losing its taste for nuclear power. That’s bad news.”, MIT Technology Review, 12 December 2018,see https://www.technologyreview.com/s/612564/chinas-losing-its-taste-for-nuclear-power-thats-bad-news/, accessed
12 December 2018.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Despite this decline, China continues to be the country with the largest number of nuclear
reactors under construction. There are 10 units totaling 8.8 GW under construction, nearly
one quarter of a global total of 46 reactors underway as of mid-2019 (see Annex 7, Table 27).
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) still does not list the CFR-600 fast neutron
reactor as being under construction. However, media reports suggest that the first pour ofconcrete for this project occurred in December 2017, with commercial operation expected in
2023.53 Thus, WNISR considers the unit as under construction.
The figure of 10 reactors under construction is significantly below the figure of 16 one year
earlier, and of 20 two years before. This new-build decline is a clear demonstration of theslowdown of the Chinese nuclear power program.
At least three of the 10 reactors under construction are delayed: the first two Hualong One(HPR‑1000) reactors being built at Fuqing, and the High Temperature Gas Cooled Reactor at
Shidaowan (more on the latter in the chapter on Small Modular Reactors). Progress on the
HPR‑1000 design is especially interesting, because its timely completion will have a bearing on
the attractiveness of China as a source of nuclear reactors, since it is this specific design that
China is planning to export to other countries.
When pouring of concrete commenced for the second HPR-1000 at Fuqing (Fuqing‑6) inDecember 2015, China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) stated that Fuqing‑5 and ‑6
were “scheduled to be completed in 2019 and 2020, respectively”.54 Even last year, one article
on nuclear power in China reported “CNNC says it will have one reactor operating in 2019,ahead of schedule”.55 The “ahead of schedule” claim has been repeated, including by CNNC in
April 2019 when it began cold hydrostatic testing of Unit 5 of the Fuqing nuclear power plant.56
However, if one looks at past examples, the time it has taken to go from cold testing to gridconnection ranges from 16 months (Hongyanhe‑1) to 10 months (Ningde-3), suggesting that it
is unlikely that Fuqing-5 will be connected to the grid before 2020.
China connected seven reactors to the grid in five months (between May and October 2018),
and two in June 2019. These included two EPRs (Taishan‑1 and ‑2), four AP‑1000s (Sanmen‑1
and ‑2, and Haiyang-1 and ‑2) and one ACPR-1000 (Yangjiang-6). The EPRs and the AP-1000s
were both high-profile flagship projects for these two designs and much rested on the successof these projects. The Sanmen project was touted as “the biggest energy cooperation project
between China and the United States” by the head of the National Energy Administration in2009.57
As previous issues of the WNISR have documented in detail, eight of those nine reactors were
delayed, and for most of them completion took about twice as long as predicted at the time of

53 - WNN, “China begins building pilot fast reactor”, World Nuclear News, 29 December 2017,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-China-begins-building-pilot-fast-reactor-2912174.html, accessed 16 June 2019.
54 - WNN, “First concrete for sixth Fuqing unit”, 22 December 2015, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-First-concrete-forsixth-Fuqing-unit-2212154.html, accessed 16 June 2019.
55 - Peter Fairley, “China’s losing its taste for nuclear power. That’s bad news.”, MIT Technology Review, 12 December 2018, op. cit.
56 - WNN, “Cold testing under way at Chinese Hualong One unit”, 29 April 2019,see http://world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Cold-testing-underway-at-Chinese-Hualong-One-unit, accessed 17 June 2019.
57 - Xinhua, “China starts building 3rd-generation nuclear power reactors using Westinghouse technologies”, People’s Daily Online,
20 April 2009, see http://en.people.cn/90001/90778/90857/90860/6640730.html, accessed 13 May 2018.

| 60

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

construction start (see Figure 10). The delays were largely a result of the designs not being
finalized, quality problems during constructions and safety concerns.
Whatever those causes, the net result is that the market for AP‑1000 reactors and EPRs in
China has all but evaporated. An example is the Zhagzhou site in Fujian, which some news
sources have identified as having been earmarked for AP‑1000 reactors earlier,58 but is now
likely to be the next site for the construction of another Hualong power plant.59 CNNC’s
decision to construct a Hualong reactor there was explained by the dean of the College ofEnergy at Xiamen University: “The problem with AP1000—the delays, the design changes, thesupply chain issues and then the trade problems—has forced their hand, and it has become
Hualong”.60
The problems with imported reactor construction have also affected the prospects for thedomestically designed Hualong. While the latter is clearly the preferred choice for new
construction, the Chinese government has not been granting the requisite permissions for a
rapid buildup. In February 2017, China’s National Energy Administration (NEA) reportedly
approved the construction start of eight new reactors.61 But more than two years later, noneof those have actually started construction. Again, in February 2019, the State Council was
reportedly “close to formally approving two twin-unit Hualong-One projects, in Zhangzhou
and Huizhou”.62 As of the time of writing, none of them had come through. This is not to saythat no new projects will be approved. But it is clear that nuclear power construction has
slowed down and at this point, there is no sign that this will not stay that way.
The repeated delays have finally led Chinese officials to admit to what previous issues ofthe WNISR had already established—that is China will not meet its declared target of an
installed capacity of 58 GW of nuclear power by 2020. In April 2019, China Electricity Council
Vice Chairman Wei Shaofeng told the China Nuclear Energy Sustainable Development Forumin Beijing that “total nuclear capacity is expected to reach 53 GW next year”.63 The other, lessoften talked about, target of having 30 GW of nuclear power capacity under construction as of2020 is also virtually impossible at this point.
China continues to be on the lookout for opportunities to export the HPR‑1000. The only
reactors of the design under construction outside China are at the Karachi Nuclear Power
Plant (KANUPP) in Pakistan, and those are reportedly still on schedule for commercial
58 - Hideo Kubota, “China’s Nuclear Industry at a Turning Point”, Research Institute of Tepia Corporation, E-Journal of Advanced
Maintenance, Vol.1, No.3, November 2010, see http://www.jsm.or.jp/ejam/Vol.1.No.3/GA/6/article.html; and Elaine Li, “The clash for
Zhangzhou nuclear power plant”, NBN, 18 October 2016, see https://nbn.media/clash-zangzhou-nuclear-power-plant-2/, accessed
18 June 2019.
59 - Earlier in the decade, many reports suggested that Zhanghou was earmarked for the AP‑100, the small modular reactor design
promoted by CNNC. See Li Jinying, “Market Analysis of Chinese SNRs (small nuclear reactors)”, presented at the 2nd Annual Small
Modular Reactor Conference, 24 April 2012; and WNN, “Small reactors planned for Zhangzhou”, 17 November 2011. One report saysthat for the Zhangzhou site, plans (in 2011) “called for AP1000s, but the technology was switched to the Hualong‑One in 2015 amid
prolonged delays and equipment problems at the inaugural AP1000 project at Sanmen”. See C.F. Yu, “State Council Close to Approving
Hualong-One Projects”, NIW, 2019, op. cit.
60 - David Stanway, “China goes all-in on home grown tech in push for nuclear dominance”, Reuters, 17 April 2019,see https://af.reuters.com/article/africaTech/idAFL3N21R1X9, accessed 20 April 2019.
61 - WNN, “China sets out nuclear plans for 2017”, March 2017, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NP-China-sets-out-nuclearplans-for-2017-0203174.html, accessed 15 May 2018.
62 - C.F. Yu, “State Council Close to Approving Hualong‑One Projects”, NIW, 2019, op. cit.
63 - David Stanway, “China to fall short of 2020 nuclear capacity target”, Reuters, 2 April 2019,see https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-nuclearpower-idUSKCN1RE04S, accessed 2 April 2019.

| 61

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

operation in 2021 and 2022.64 Over “80 percent of the estimated project cost is being financed
through a loan from China’s state-owned Export-Import (Exim) Bank”.65
There are reports of China being close to signing a deal with Argentina to export one HPR‑1000
reactor, which has been valued at US$8 billion66 to US$10 billion.67 The two countries have been
exploring reactor construction for many years now, but as of mid-2019, a final agreement had
not been reached. A key reason for the progress of the deal appears to be China’s willingness tooffer a “loan from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), which will cover 85%
of the plant’s construction costs”.68
Finally, the other major hope of exports for China is in the U.K., where China’s strategy
has revolved around first getting a toehold in the market by collaborating with EDF on its
Hinkley Point project, and then, if that project proceeds, a significant role in the Sizewell C
nuclear power station project.69 The Hualong reactor design is being assessed by the regulatory
authority with proposals to build it at Bradwell (see U.K. Focus for more information).

FINLAND FOCUS
Finland operates four units that in 2018 supplied 21.9 TWh of electricity, compared to 21.6 TWh
in 2017 and the maximum of 22.7 TWh in 2013. The nuclear share represented 32.4 percentof the nation’s electricity in 2018, compared to 33.2 percent in 2017 and the highest share of
38.4 percent in 1986. On 7 March 2019, the Cabinet approved the operating license for Finland’s
fifth reactor, the 1.6 GW EPR at Olkiluoto (OL3), which has been under construction sinceAugust 2005.70 The reactor has had multiple revised startup dates; in March 2019, the target
date for grid connection was April 2020, 15 years after construction start and 11 years later
than originally planned.71
Finland has already adopted different nuclear technologies and suppliers, as two of its
operating reactors are VVERs (Vodo-Vodianoï Energuetitcheski Reaktor) V213 built by Russian
contractors at Loviisa, while two are AAIII, BWR‑2500 built by Asea Brown Boveri (ABB) at
Olkiluoto. The OL3 EPR contractor is AREVA. The average age of the four operating reactors
is 40.3 years. In January 2017, operator TVO (Teollisuuden Voima’s) filed an application for
64 - WNN, “Karachi 2 reactor internals in place”, 31 January 2019,see http://world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Karachi-2-reactor-internals-in-place, accessed 14 June 2019.
65 - Power Technology, “Karachi Nuclear Power Plant (KANUPP) Expansion, Pakistan”, Undated,
see https://www.power-technology.com/projects/karachi-nuclear-power-plant-expansion/, accessed 18 June 2019.
66 - David Stanway, “Argentina, China still discussing nuclear power project: undersecretary”, Reuters, 2 April 2019,see https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-nuclearpower-argentina/argentina-china-still-discussing-nuclear-power-projectundersecretary-idUSKCN1RE0O5, accessed 19 June 2019.
67 - Fermín Koop, Lili Pike, “China eyes Argentina in global nuclear roll out”, Diálogo Chino, 23 May 2019,see https://dialogochino.net/27282-china-eyes-argentina-in-global-nuclear-roll-out/, accessed 4 June 2019.
68 - Ibidem.
69 - WNN, “EDF Energy expects 20% cost saving for Sizewell C”, 18 January 2018,see https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/EDF-Energy-expects-20-cost-saving-for-Sizewell-C, accessed 19 June 2019.
70 - YLE, “Third Olkiluoto nuclear reactor granted operating license”, 8 March 2019,see https://yle.fi/uutiset/osasto/news/third_olkiluoto_nuclear_reactor_granted_operating_license/10680697, accessed 9 June 2019.
71 - TVO, “OL3 EPR’s regular electricity generation starts in July 2020”, 17 July 2019, see https://www.tvo.fi/news/,
accessed 17 July 2019.

| 62

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

a 20‑year license extension for the respectively 39 and 37‑year old units Olkiluoto‑1 and ‑2.72
On 20 September 2018, the Cabinet approved the lifetime extension for Teollisuuden
Voima’s (TVO) Olkiluoto1 and 2 to operate until 2038.73
There are improved prospects for additional lifetime extension of nuclear reactors in Finland
following the announcement on 4 June 2019 of the coalition government’s carbon neutral 2035
objective. The government program states: “We view extended permits for existing nuclear
power plants positively, provided that the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority is in favourof them”.74 Analysis of the scenario of a fossil free energy system is predicated on 36 TWh of
nuclear generation, 64 percent higher than in 2018.75 While the operation of OL3 could make up
part of this added generation, lifetime extensions would be required also for the Soviet designed
Loviisa1 and 2. The Loviisa reactors began operation in February 1977 and November 1980 andare licensed to operate until 2027 and 2030, respectively. Alternatively, the production goal
would mean the completion and operation of the 1200 MW AES-2006 Hanhikivi-1, not yet
under construction, but scheduled to begin operation in 2028.

Olkiluoto-3 (OL3)In December 2003, Finland became the first country to order a new nuclear reactor inWestern Europe since 1988. AREVA NP, then a joint venture owned 66 percent by AREVA and
34 percent by Siemens,76 was contracted to build the EPR at Olkiluoto (OL3) under a fixedpriceturnkey contract with the utility TVO. After the 2015 technical bankruptcy of AREVA Group,in which the cost overruns of Olkiluoto had played a large part, the majority shareholder, theFrench government, decided to integrate the reactor-building division under new-old nameFramatome into a subsidiary majorityowned by state utility EDF. However, EDF made it clearthat it will not take over the billions of euros’ liabilities linked to the costly Finnish AREVA
adventure.77 Thus, it was decided that the financial liability for OL3 and associated risks staywith AREVA S.A. after the sale of AREVA NP and the creation of a new company AREVA
Holding, now named Orano, that will focus on nuclear fuel and waste management services,very similar to the old COGEMA. In July 2017, the French government confirmed that it hadcompleted its €2 billion (US$2.3 billion) capital increase, most of which was to cover the costs
to AREVA of the OL3 project.78
72 - TVO, “New operating license applied for Olkiluoto 1 and 2 plant units”, 26 January 2017, see http://tvo.fi/news/1830, accessed
9 June 2019.
73 - TVO, “Finnish Government Approves Extension Of Operating Licences For OL1 And OL2 Plant Units”, 20 September 2018,see https://www.tvo.fi/news/2043, accessed 9 June 2019.
74 - Finnish Government, “Programme of Prime Minister Antti Rinne’s Government 6 June 2019—Inclusive and competentFinland – a socially, economically and ecologically sustainable society”, June 2019, see http://julkaisut.valtioneuvosto.fi/bitstream/
handle/10024/161664/Inclusive%20and%20competent%20Finland_2019.pdf?sequence=9&isAllowed=y, accessed 15 June 2019.
75 - Smart Energy Transition, “Finnish energy system can be made 100% fossil free”, 4 December 2018,see http://smartenergytransition.fi/en/finnish-energy-system-can-be-made-100-fossil-fuel-free/, accessed 13 June 2019.
76 - Siemens quit the consortium in March 2011 and announced in September 2011 that it was abandoning the nuclear sector entirely;
see WNN, “Siemens quits the nuclear game”, 19 September 2011, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/C_Siemens_ quits_the_nuclear_game_1909111.html, accessed 4 June 2018.
77 - Jean-Michel Bezat, “EDF pose ses conditions au rachat des réacteurs d’Areva”, Le Monde, 19 May 2015 (in French),see http://www.lemonde.fr/economie/article/2015/05/19/edf-pose-ses-conditions-au-rachat-des-reacteurs-d-are-va_4636164_3234.html,
accessed 9 June 2019.
78 - Jean-Michel Belot, Richard Lough, “Areva says French state completes two billion-euro capital increase”, Reuters, 12 July 2017,see https://www.reuters.com/article/us-arevasa-capital-idUSKBN19X2S9, accessed 9 June 2019.

| 63

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

The OL3 project was financed essentially on the balance sheets of the Finland’s leading firms
and heavy energy users as well as a number of municipalities under a unique arrangement thatmakes them liable for the plant’s indefinite capital costs for an indefinite period, whether or
not they get the electricity—a capex “takeorpay contract”, in addition to the additional billions
incurred by AREVA under the fixed price contract.
OL3 construction started in August 2005, with operations planned from 2009. However, asthat date—and other dates—passed, in its 2015 Annual Report, TVO stated: “According to theschedule updated by the Supplier, regular electricity production at OL3 will commence at theend of 2018”.79
From the beginning, the OL3 project was plagued with countless management and qualitycontrol issues. Not only did it prove difficult to carry out concreting and welding to technicalspecifications, but the use of sub-contractors and workers from over 50 nationalities madecommunication and oversight extremely complex (see previous WNISR editions).
After further multiple delays, TVO announced in October 2017 that it had again delayedplanned commercial operation from November 2018 to May 2019, with grid connection
planned for December 2018.80 TVO then announced in April 2018 that fuel loading was delayed
until autumn 2018 (prior to this it had been scheduled for April 2018).81 A further delay wasannounced in June 2018, with grid connection planned for May 2019, and “regular electricity
generation” in September 2019.82 That target has now been missed as well. In April 2019 fuelloading was pushed further to August 2019. However, given the need to verify the effectivenessof the measures implemented by TVO to counter vibration in the pressurizer surge line (seehereunder), it is likely that fuel loading will be further delayed.
TVO’s claims of grid connection in October 2019 and electricity generation by January 2020
were considered by WNISR as highly optimistic.83 On 17 July 2019, TVO confirmed further
delays to OL3. The revised schedule provided by plant supplier AREVA/Siemens to TVO
reported that nuclear fuel loading is now planned from January 2020, with grid connectionin April 2020 and commercial operation from July 2020. TVO Director of the OL3 project,
Jouni Silvennoinen, stated that “Although, the completion of the plant unit will be further
delayed, we are currently working to reach the fuel loading phase and to take over the OL3 EPR
unit.”84
OL3 was cited by the nuclear industry as a showcase for next-generation reactor technology
with TVO and AREVA predicting 56 months to completion. However, WNISR predicted nearly

79 - TVO, “Report of the Board of Directors and Financial Statements 2015”, February 2016, see http://www.tvo.fi/news/1692, accessed
9 June 2019.
80 - Jussi Rosendahl, Tuomas Forsell, “Areva’s Finland reactor to start in 2019 after another delay”, Reuters, 9 October 2017,see https://www.reuters.com/article/us-finland-nuclear-olkiluoto/arevas-finland-reactor-to-start-in-2019-after-another-delayidUSKBN1CE1ND, accessed 9 June 2019.
81 - AREVA, “2016 Reference Document”, May 2017.
82 - TVO, “OL3 EPR’s regular electricity generation starts in September 2019”, Press Release, 13 June 2018,see https://www.tvo.fi/news/2000, accessed 9 June 2019.
83 - WNN, “TVO starts work to resolve Olkiluoto 3 vibration issue”, 23 May 2019,see https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/TVO-starts-work-to-resolve-Olkiluoto-3-vibration-i, accessed 10 June 2019.
84 - TVO, “OL3 EPR’s regular electricity generation starts in July 2020”, 17 July 2019, see https://www.tvo.fi/news/, accessed
17 July 2019.

| 64

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

a decade ago that the project would lead to a crisis,85 which has turned out to be correct as
its total construction time to operation on the current schedule of January 2020, will be
188 months, and operation more than ten years behind schedule.

OL3 Pressurizer Vibration
A major factor that has contributed to the delays in the OL3 project during the past 12 months
has been a significant technical safety issue. During hot functional testing (HFT) of OL3,
which was completed in May 2018,86 excessive vibration was detected in the pressurizer surgeline which contains high temperature and radioactive reactor coolant under high pressure. The
vibrations were outside the permitted safety margin.87
The pressurizer surge-line is a Category 1 component (nuclear class I) and seismic category I. It
is one of the most important components in maintaining the integrity of the primary pressure
boundary. The pressurizer controls the Reactor Coolant System (RCS) pressure by maintaining
the temperature of the pressurizer liquid at the saturation temperature corresponding to
the desired system pressure with heaters and spray. TVO, at completion of HFT, reported inJune 2018 that “the pressurizer surge line vibrations that delayed the hot functional tests will
be corrected before fuel loading.”88
Vibration outside operational license and design base conditions can be considered a major
safety issue, since it could lead, in the worst case, to significant internal pipe damage, including
the break of the pressurizer surge-line. A likely cause of the vibration is thermal stratificationin the surge line which is greatest during heat-up and cooldown because the temperature
difference between the pressurizer and hot leg is then the largest.89
The Finnish safety regulator STUK, while reporting to the Government in February 2019that operation of the OL3 would be safe, noted that before fuel loading could be authorized,
technical solutions needed to be applied to suppress the pressurizer surge-line vibration of the
primary circuit. STUK would “supervise the work and verify before the loading of fuel that thealteration works have been performed and the operability of the solution has been tested.”90
On 23 May 2019, TVO announced that it had “resolved” the surge-line vibrations.91 In practice,
TVO has begun the installation of viscous bitumen liquid absorbers with the aim of dampening
85 - Steve Thomas, “The EPR in Crisis”, Public Services International Research Unit, Business School, University of Greenwich,
London, November 2010, see https://gala.gre.ac.uk/id/eprint/4699/3/(ITEM_4699)_THOMAS_2010-11-E-EPR.pdf, accessed 4 June 2018;
and WNISR, “The World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2009”, see https://www.worldnuclearreport.org/The-World-NuclearIndustry-Status-52.html, accessed 9 June 2019.
86 - TVO, “OL3 EPR’s regular electricity generation starts in September 2019”, Press Release, 13 June 2018.
87 - Lefteris Karagiannopoulos, “Exclusive: Safety problem found at Areva’s Finnish reactor before start-up – regulator”, Reuters,
23 February 2019, see https://www.reuters.com/article/us-finland-nuclear-safety-exclusive/exclusive-safety-problem-found-at-arevasfinnish-reactor-before-start-up-regulator-idUSKCN1QB27O, accessed 9 June 2019.
88 - TVO, “OL3 EPR’s regular electricity generation starts in September 2019”, Press Release, 13 June 2018.
89 - B. Liang, “Periodic Remaining Life Evaluation Program Of PWR Presurizer Surge Line Accounting For Thermal Stratification
Effect”, Shanghai Nuclear Engineering Research and Design Institute, China, IAEA-CN-155-041,
see https://www-pub.iaea.org/MTCD/Publications/PDF/P1362_CD/htm/pdf/Session3/041.pdf, accessed 30 August 2019.
90 - STUK, “Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK): Operating licence can be granted to Olkiluoto 3”, Press Release,
25 February 2019, see https://www.stuk.fi/web/en/-/radiation-and-nuclear-safety-authority-stuk-operating-licence-can-be-granted-toolkiluoto-3, accessed 12 June 2019.
91 - TVO, “Olkiluoto 3 Surge Line Vibration Is Resolved”, 23 May 2019, see https://www.tvo.fi/news/2114, accessed 12 June 2019.

| 65

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

the vibration effects, with a target of completing installation in late spring. As of 1 July 2019,
work was ongoing. Interestingly, a vibration problem has been confirmed also in the Taishan1
EPR in China, where a “muffler” system has been installed. TVO chose the bitumen/viscous
system “because there is more vibration at Olkiluoto‑3 than at Taishan and the viscous systemseemed to work better.”92

OL3 Costs
As WNISR has documented over the years, the EPR has been a financial disaster. In March 2018,
TVO and AREVA announced that they had reached agreement on the completion of OL3,
settling all related disputes.93 In relation to costs and losses caused by the delays, financial
compensation of €450 million was to be paid by AREVA to TVO in two installments. There wasalso a commitment by AREVA that there were sufficient funds for completion of OL3 and thatthey will cover all applicable guarantee periods, including setting up a trust mechanism fundedby AREVA to secure the financing of the costs of completion of the project. The settlementagreement also stipulated that in the event that AREVA fails to complete the project by the endof 2019, they will pay a penalty to TVO that may not exceed €400 million (US$450 million).
With the confirmation of the settlement and TVO disclosing its total investment, it is possible
to indicate the cost of the Finnish EPR. TVO’s current capital expenditure assumptions andthe effect of the settlement agreement estimates its total investment to be around €5.5 billion(US$6.42 billion); on top of this AREVA had losses of €5.5 billion, for a total of €11 billion(US$12.4 billion) compared with the initial estimate cost in 2003 of “around €3 billion”.
Rather prematurely, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in 2005 proclaimed that
“The EPR becomes reality at Finland’s Olkiluoto3”.94 Fifteen years later, it is possible thatby the time of WNISR2020 the OL3 reactor will be operating. But the multiple failures andenormous cost overruns during the past 14 years of construction have had a major impact
on the prospects for nuclear power in Europe and beyond. Touted as spearheading a nuclear
renaissance,95 it has instead exposed the implementation difficulties of even a single reactor
project.
In Finland there is no more talk of a second EPR as OL4, as originally planned. Nearly a decadeago, Steve Thomas, energy economist and past contributing author to the WNISR, wrote:
The promise for Generation III+ plants that they would: ‘have the advantage of combining
technology familiar to operators of current plants with vastly improved safety features andsignificant simplification is expected to result in lower and more predictable construction
and operating costs’ has clearly not been fulfilled... As early as 1995 and again in 1997, there
were concerns about the cost of the EPR then expected to be US$2000/kW.... At US$6000/
kW or more, it seems unlikely that the EPR will be affordable except where huge public
92 - NW, “Vibration damping system being installed at Olkiluoto‑3 in Finland”, 21 March 2019.
93 - TVO, “TVO confirms a settlement agreement signed on OL3 EPR project completion and related disputes”, 11 March 2018,see https://www.tvo.fi/news/1966, accessed 19 July 2019.
94 - U. Giese, R. Leverenz, “The EPR becomes reality at Finland’s Olkiluoto 3”, Framatome ANP GmBH, IAEA, 2005,
see https://inis.iaea.org/search/search.aspx?orig_q=RN:37052975, accessed 12 June 2019.
95 - Zoran V. Stosic, “The Nuclear Renaissance and AREVA’s Reactor Designs for the 21st Century: EPR and SWR‑1000”, AREVA NP,
Proceedings of the International Conference Nuclear Energy for New Europe 2007, Portorož (Slovenia), 10–13 September 2007,see http://www.djs.si/proc/port2007/htm/pdf/014.pdf, accessed 12 June 2019.

| 66

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

subsidies are offered and/or there is a strong likelihood of full cost recovery from consumers,
no matter what the cost is.96

And as WNISR reported already in 2009: “The flagship EPR project at Olkiluoto in Finland,
managed by the largest nuclear builder in the world, AREVA NP, has turned into a financial
fiasco.”97
In the ten years since then, the experience of the OL3 project has only further confirmed theseanalyses.

Hanhikivi-1
In addition to OL3, in January 2009, the company Fennovoima Oy applied to the Ministryof Employment and the Economy for a decision-in-principle on a new nuclear plant at one ofthree locations—Ruotsinpyhtää, Simo, or Pyhäjoki. This was narrowed down to the latter site.
Fennovoima Oy was established by a consortium of Finnish power and industrial companies.
As with OL3, there was an unrealistic startup date given for 2020. In March 2014, Rosatom,
through a subsidiary company RAOS Voima Oy, completed the purchase of 34 percent of
Fennovoima for an undisclosed price,98 and then in April 2014 a “binding decision to construct”
a 1200 MW AES2006 reactor was announced.
In December 2014, the Finnish Parliament voted in favor of a supplement to the decisionin-principle to include Rosatom’s reactor design.99 A construction license application was
submitted at the end of June 2015. In September 2015, the Finnish Nuclear Safety Authority
STUK began assessing the project called Hanhikivi1, which at the time was reported would
take until the end of 2017.100
However, site-preparation work and rock blasting reportedly already began in January 2016.101
Actual construction was scheduled to start some time in 2018, with completion expected in
2024.102 However, as WNISR2018 reported, the schedule was not credible—just like in manyother Rosatom projects—as the “first batch of documentation” for the construction license
application was only transmitted to the Finnish safety authorities on 1 November 2016.103
Subsequently, in November 2017, Fennovoima Oy was instructed by STUK to “improve their

96 - Steve Thomas, “The EPR in Crisis”, November 2010, University of Greenwich, London,
see https://gala.gre.ac.uk/id/eprint/4699/3/(ITEM_4699)_THOMAS_2010-11-E-EPR.pdf, accessed 12 June 2019.
97 - Mycle Schneider, Antony Froggatt, et al., “The World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2009—With Particular Emphasis on
Economic Issues”, 11 June 2012, see https://www.worldnuclearreport.org/The-World-Nuclear-Industry-Status-52.html, accessed
12 June 2019.
98 - Fennovoima, “Rosatom acquired 34% of Fennovoima”, Press Release, 27 March 2014.
99 - WNN, “Parliament approves Fennovoima’s amendment”, 5 December 2014,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-parliament-approves-Fennovoimas-amendment-5121401.html, accessed 12 June 2019.
100 - STUK, “STUK will start the Construction License safety review and assessment of Fennovoima’s project”, Press Release,
8 September 2015, see https://www.stuk.fi/web/en/-/stuk-will-start-the-construction-license-safety-review-and-assessment-offennovoima-s-project, accessed 12 June 2019.
101 - PIE, “PIE’s New Power Plant Project Tracker”, February 2016.
102 - WNN, “Daily”, 21 March and 8 June 2017.
103 - WNN, “Daily”, 2 November 2016.

| 67

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

operations before they are in a position to start the construction work.”104 STUK warned that“among other things, Fennovoima must improve the supervision of the organizations involvedin the planning and construction of the nuclear power plant. The safety culture of RAOS
Project, which is the plant supplier, and the main contractor Titan 2 currently does not fulfill
the Finnish expectations”.105
A 2013 assessment of the AES-2006 reactor concluded that a “long list of safety issues showsthat a sufficient level of protection against external and internal impacts as well as thefunctionally [functionality] of the safety systems had not been demonstrated in a sufficientmanner to allow STUK to conclude a positive review. Up to now, a severe accident cannot
be excluded due to the design of the AES2006.”106 The STUK review process is ongoing. In
December 2018, Fennovoima Oy announced that they had a received a new revised schedulefrom the plant supplier RAOS Project.107 This projected that a construction license would besecured in 2021 and construction begun in the same year, with operation of the plant pushed
back to 2028. With construction not yet started, the Hanhikivi1 project is already eight years
behind the original schedule.

FRANCE FOCUS
Multi Annual Energy Plan and The Energy BillIn April 2019, the French Government tabled a bill at the National Assembly on the basis of
the draft Multi Annual Energy Plan (PPE). The PPE is a planning tool introduced in the 2015
Energy Transition Law that will define the framework of the French energy landscape to 2023
and beyond. The PPE sets the priorities of action for public authorities concerning all forms ofenergy generation as well as energy efficiency. It will also determine the near-term future of
nuclear power in setting targets for installed capacity and therefore the potential closure of anumber of reactors. The bill has passed both chambers in the first reading and on 19 July 2019a mixed commission was appointed to elaborate compromise solutions to outstanding issues
under an accelerated procedure.108
WNISR2018 stated:
The state-controlled utility Électricité de France (EDF) seems to live in a different worldand stated in its contribution to the PPE consultation that it “envisages certain closures”
104 - STUK, “STUK demands a better safety culture from the Fennovoima nuclear power plant project”, 9 November 2017,see http://www.stuk.fi/web/en/-/stuk-demands-a-better-safety-culture-from-the-fennovoima-nuclear-power-plant-project, accessed
12 June 2019.
105 - Ibidem.
106 - Oda Becker, “NPP Fennovoima (Hanhikivi 1)”, Report REP-0447, Expert Statement to the EIA Program, commissioned by
the Austrian Federal Ministry for Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management, Project Management Department
V/6 “Nuclear Coordination” and the Government of Lower Austria, 2013, see https://www.umweltbundesamt.at/fileadmin/site/
publikationen/REP0447.pdf, accessed 13 June 2019.
107 - Fennovoima, “The Hanhikivi 1 project schedule to be re-evaluated”, 21 December 2018,see https://www.fennovoima.fi/en/news/hanhikivi-1-project-schedule-be-re-evaluated, accessed 12 June 2019.
108 - For the status of the legislative procedure see Assemblée Nationale, “Projet de Loi–Energie et climat”, introduced 30 April 2019
(in French), see http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/dyn/15/dossiers/alt/energie_climat, accessed 24 July 2019.

| 68

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 of nuclear reactors “starting 2029”.109 The startling suggestion simply ignores the current
legislation that stipulates a reduction of the nuclear share in the French power mix to
50 percent by 2025 and the context of the entire debate.

In fact, EDF got its way to some extent, and the government’s draft bill, while maintaining
the 50percent target, moves it from 2025 to 2035. According to the government, maintaining
the 2025 deadline would have meant the construction of new gas-fired power plants,“in contradiction with our climate objectives”110, a position contested by its own Energy
Management Agency ADEME.111 At the same time, it raises the stakes on the phase-out of fossil
fuels, increasing the 2030 target from –30 percent to –40 percent (baseline 1990) and thus
reducing the overall 2050-greenhouse-gas emissions by a factor of more than six rather thanfour. The last coal-fired power plant is to be closed by 2022. However, this could be delayed as
the Flamanville3 EPR will not be in operation until then (see hereunder).
According to the government model, achieving a reduction to 50 percent of the nuclear sharein the electricity mix would lead to the closure of 14 reactors by 2035, including the two oldest
units at Fessenheim in spring 2020, and two to four additional units by 2028. Achieving the2025 target would have meant the closure of 24 reactors over a shorter time span.
The draft law does not mention spent fuel management, but the PPE—citing jobs, reduction
in natural uranium use and spent fuel generation, as well as “a better containment for the
final waste”—stipulates that the “spent fuel-reprocessing and -recycling policy must be
maintained”.112

French Nuclear Power Performance Remains Poor
In 2018, 58 operating reactors113 in France produced 395.91 TWh, a significant improvement(+14.1 TWh or +3.7 percent) over the previous year. However, it is the third year in a row thatgeneration remained below 400 TWh. In 2005, nuclear generation peaked at 431.2 TWh.
Nuclear plants provided 71.7 percent of the country’s electricity, only 0.1 percentage point
better than in 2017, which was the lowest share since 1988. The share stabilized after declining
four years in a row at almost 7 percentage points below the peak year of 2005 (78.5 percent).
France’s load factor at 69.6 percent was still poor in 2018 but improved since a record lowof 55.6 percent in 2016, then second lowest in the world behind Argentina. The lifetime loadfactor remains constant below 70 percent (69.3 percent). According to operator EDF:
In 2018, generation performance was affected by exceptional damages and large generation
incidents (costing around 12.5 TWh), longer-than-expected outages (costing around
5 TWh) and environmental constraints (costing around 2 TWh). The outage extensions
109 - EDF, “Cahier d’acteur n°43”, Débat Public PPE, May 2018.
110 - Assemblée Nationale, “Projet de loi relatif à l’énergie et au climat”, tabled by Prime Minister Édouard Philippe and then-Ministerof Ecology François de Rugy, 30 April 2019.
111 - ADEME = Agence de l’Environnement et de la Maîtrise de l’Énergie; the French Environment & Energy Management Agency.
112 - Ministry for Ecology, “French Strategy for Energy and Climate—Multi Annual Energy Plan—2019‑2023—2024‑2028, April 2019.
The plutonium separation and use strategy is highly controversial but its discussion would be outside the scope of the WNISR. For
information on reprocessing and plutonium, see work by the International Panel on Fissile Materials (IPFM) at fissilematerials.org.
113 - All Pressurized Water Reactors (PWRs), 34 x 900 MW, 20 x 1300 MW, and 4 x 1400 MW.

| 69

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

experienced in 2018 were caused in equal measure by maintenance and operational quality
issues, technical failures and project management deficiencies. Performance losses related
to unplanned outages rose from a rate of 3.26% in 2017 to 3.7% in 2018 because of several
exceptional incidents.114

Environmental constraints refer to operating restrictions for several nuclear plants because oflack of cooling water or excess water temperatures. The heat wave in the summer of 2019 led
again to the closure or output reduction of several reactors, including the two Golfech units
and the two SaintAlban units.

Power Trade
For many years, France was Europe’s largest electricity exporter, but in 2016, net exports
dropped by 36.6 percent to 39.1 TWh, while Germany’s net power exports hit a new record
at 53.7 TWh. For the first time, Germany overtook France and became the biggest net power
exporter in Europe.115 In 2017, this trend was reinforced, with France’s net exports shrinking
again to 38 TWh net,116 while Germany’s net exports increased again to some 55 TWh,117 withFrance being the second largest net importer from Germany with 13.7 TWh.118 In January 2018,
France imported just under 1 TWh net, “a level that had never been reached”, according to
RTE.119 However, over the year 2018 with particularly high output of its hydro plants due tofavorable climatic conditions, France exported 60.2 TWh net and recovered its position as thelargest net exporter in the EU,120 with Germany exporting 51.2 TWh net. At the same time,
France fell back to the third largest net importer from Germany with 8.9 TWh, but keeps
importing from Germany more than from any other country. 121

Nuclear Unavailability Review 2018
The analysis of the unavailability of French nuclear reactors in 2018 shows:ɆɆ A minimum of four French reactors have been down (zero capacity) at the same time.
ɆɆ A maximum of 27 of the 58 units were down at the same time.
ɆɆ On 38 occasions, 18 units were down during the same day.
ɆɆ One 50 occasions, 16 units were down during the same day.
The total number of zero output days of the French reactor fleet exceeded 5,000 days in 2018,an average of 87.6 days per reactor or an outage ratio of a quarter of the time, not including load
114 - EDF, “Reference Document 2018”, April 2019.
115 - AGEB, “Bruttostromerzeugung in Deutschland ab 1990 nach Energieträgern”, Working Group on Energy Balances, German
Institute for Economic Research (DIW), March 2019 (in German), see http://www.ag-energiebilanzen.de/index.php?article_
id=29&fileName=20170207_brd_stromerzeugung1990-2016.pdf, accessed 23 June 2017.
116 - RTE, “Mon bilan électrique 2017”, 2018.
117 - Updated figure according to AGEB, “Bruttostromerzeugung in Deutschland ab 1990 nach Energieträgern”, March 2019, op. cit.
118 - Agora Energiewende, “Die Energiewende im Stromsektor: Stand der Dinge 2017”, January 2018.
119 - RTE, “Bilan électrique 2017”, 2018.
120 - RTE, “Bilan électrique 2018”, 2019.
121 - Agora Energiewende, “Die Energiewende im Stromsektor: Stand der Dinge 2018”, January 2019.

| 70

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 71

following or other operational situations with reduced but above-zero output e.g. as during theheat wave (see Figure 24 and Figure 25).
Figure 24 | Reactor Outages in France in 2018 (in number of units and GWe)

Unavailability of French Nuclear Reactors in 2018
Reactors Offline the Same Day (Zero Output)in Units and Capacity

25-26 August 201827 of 58 Reactors
Offline Simultaneously(17 hours)

Half of French Capacity
30

Half of French Reactor Fleet

25
GW
Units

20

15

10

5

0 01/01

01/02/18

01/03/18

01/04/18

01/05/18

01/06/18

01/07/18

01/08/18

01/09/18

01/10/18

01/11/18

01/12/18

31/12© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Sources: RTE and EDF, “List of outages”, 2019122

Note

For each day in the year, this graph shows the total number of reactors offline, not necessarily simultaneously as all unavailabilities do not overlap, but on thesame day.

Some of the longest outages include:ɆɆ Cattenom-2 (182 days): The unavailability included 141 days for the third decennial
review (VD3)123 , preceded by 41 days for “maintenance” work.
ɆɆ Dampierre-4 (193 days in 2018): The outage was mainly due to the VD3 that progressively
increased from an expected 50 days to 191 days.
ɆɆ Gravelines-6 (210 days in 2018): The shutdown was essentially due to the VD3 that was
progressively extended from a scheduled 164 days, when it started, to 208 days. This iseven more remarkable as the VD3 was originally to include the replacement of thereactor’s three steam generators, an operation delayed to 2020 because the Nuclear Safety
Authority (ASN) did not deliver the necessary quality certificates for the new equipment.
This means another long outage is to be expected for 2020.

122 - See EDF, “List of Outages”, 2019, see https://www.edf.fr/en/the-edf-group/who-we-are/activities/optimisation-and-trading/list-ofoutages-and-messages/list-of-outages, last accessed July and August 2019.
123 - The decennial reviews (visite décennale) are time-consuming in-depth nuclear safety related inspections, backfitting andupgrading.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 72

Figure 25 | Forced and Planned Unavailability of Nuclear Reactors in France in 2018

Unavailability of French Nuclear Reactors in 2018

Reactors
Fessenheim-1
Flamanville-2
Chooz-2
Paluel-4
Bugey-3
Golfech-1Chinon-1
Blayais-2
Dampierre-1
Blayais-4
Gravelines-2
Chinon-3
Paluel-1
Cattenom-4
Gravelines-1
St Laurent-1
Gravelines-4
Belleville-1
Cruas-1
Civaux-1
Blayais-1
Gravelines-5
Blayais-3
Penly-2
Dampierre-3
Penly-1
Cattenom-3
Nogent-2
Bugey-2
Tricastin-4
Cattenom-1
Bugey-4
Paluel-3
Dampierre-2
Gravelines-3
Chooz-1
Nogent-1
Tricastin-1
Cruas-3Chinon-4
Golfech-2
St Alban-1
Chinon-2
St Laurent-2
Belleville-2
Civaux-2
Tricastin-3
Fessenheim-2
Cruas-2
Bugey-5
Cruas-4
Tricastin-2
St Alban-2
Cattenom-2
Dampierre-4
Gravelines-6
Paluel-2
Flamanville-1

Cumulated Duration of Unavailability at Zero Power (in Days)

Average total unavailability
by reactor: 87.6 days

Planned Unavailability

Forced Unavailability

In 2018, unavailabilities at zero power affecting the French
nuclear fleet reached a total of 5,080 reactor-days,or an average of 87.6 days per reactor.
All of the 58 reactors were affected, with cumulated
outages between 11 and 289 days.

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

0

50

100

150

200

250

Cumulated Duration of Unavailabilities (in Days)

Sources: Compilation from RTE, 2019

Notes

This graph only compiles outages at zero power, thus excluding all other operational periods with reduced capacity >0 MW. Impact of unavailabilities on
power production is therefore significantly larger.
“Planned” and “Forced” unavailabilities as declared by EDF.

 Lifetime Extension, ASN and the Fourth Decennial Reviews
The average age of France’s 58 power reactors was 34.4 years by mid-2019 (see Figure 26). In
the absence of new reactor commissioning and any closure, the fleet is aging by one year every
year.
Lifetime extension beyond 40 years of some reactors—47 operating units are now over 31 years
old—would require significant additional upgrades. Also, relicensing will be subject to public
inquiries reactor by reactor.
Operating costs have increased substantially over the past years. Investments for lifetime
extensions will need to be balanced against the already excessive nuclear share in the powermix, the stagnating or decreasing electricity consumption in France—it has been roughly stable
for the past decade—and in the European Union (EU) as a whole, the shrinking client base,successful competitors, and the energy efficiency and renewable energy production targets set
at both the EU and the French levels. EDF claims that the power generating costs for existing
reactors would be €32/MWh (US$38/MWh), including nuclear operating and maintenanceWo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 73

costs (€22/MWh including fuel at €5/MWh) and all anticipated upgrading costs for plantlife extension to 50 years (10 €/MWh) remain more economic than “any new alternative”.124
However, there are serious questions about these numbers. Michèle Pappalardo, former
Ecology Minister Nicolas Hulot’s Chief of Staff and former senior representative of the
Court of Accounts, remarked during the hearings of the Inquiry Committee that EDF’s
calculation stopped mid-way in 2025, and recalled that the Court had calculated a total cost of€100 billion (US$117 billion) for the period 2014–2030.125
Figure 26 | Age Distribution of French Nuclear Fleet (by Decade)Age of French Nuclear Fleet
as of 1 July 2019

Reactor Age

44

11–20 Years
21–30 Years
31–40 Years
41 Years and Over10
158 reactors
Mean Age
34.4 Years

50 Number of Reactors
by Age Class
3© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

Apart from the two oldest French reactors at Fessenheim, now planned to be definitively closed
in spring 2020, EDF will seek lifetime extension beyond the 4th Decennial Safety Review (VD4)
for most if not all of its remaining reactors. This is in line with the Government’s Multi Annual
Energy Plan, which plans for no further reactor closures until 2023 (the end of the current
presidential term) and only a limited number in the following years. This program will belimited to 900 MWe reactors, the oldest segment of the French nuclear fleet. The first reactors
to undergo the VD4 are scheduled to include Tricastin1 in 2019, Bugey-2 and -4 in 2020, andTricastin‑2, Dampierre-1, Bugey-5 and Gravelines-1 in 2021.
EDF expects these VD4 outages to last six months, longer than the average of three tofour months experienced through VD2 and VD3 outages. However, as illustrated by the recent
outage history, many factors could lead to significantly longer outages.
Detailed generic requirements for plant life extension have not been issued yet by the Nuclear
Safety Authority (ASN). Originally, these requirements were to be issued in 2016 but theirrelease has been postponed a number of times, due to the need for extended and often
unprecedented technical discussions. The general objective of ASN has been to bring thereactors “as close as possible” to the safety level required in new reactor designs, such as the

124 - EDF, “Le parc nucléaire en exploitation en France : Exploitation, maintenance et Grand Carénage”, 11 January 2018.
125 - Barbara Pompili, “Rapport d’enquête sur la sûreté et la sécurité des installations nucléaires”, Commission d'Enquête sur la Sûreté
et la Sécurité des Installation Nucléaires, French National Assembly, N°1122, tome II, 28 June 2018 (in French),see http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/15/rap-enq/r1122-tII.asp, accessed 19 July 2018.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 74

EPR under construction in Flamanville. This is strikingly different from other countries, andnotably the U.S., where safety authorities merely request to maintain a given safety level.
ASN now plans to issue its generic order by 2020, which is particularly critical for Tricastin-1,
the first unit scheduled to undergo the VD4, starting in 2019. The case will be particularly
sensitive to unexpected difficulties. For example, the requirement to introduce a kind of corecatcher126 would be a first in an existing reactor.
It is clearly expected that the amount of work to be completed as part of the VD4 will be much
more important than for VD3, and EDF might have underestimated the resulting workload, oroverestimated its capacity to deliver on it. EDF, in fact, has already started negotiating with
ASN for the workload to be split in two packages, with the supposedly smaller second one to be
postponed four years after the VD4.127
The timely delivery of this work is likely to stretch the industrial capacity of EDF and its
subcontractors beyond its current limits. ASN has recently pointed to the need for the operator
to restore its level of industrial control as a top priority for nuclear safety.128

The Ongoing Flamanville-3 EPR Saga

At this stage, commissioning cannot be expected before end of 2022.
EDF, 25 July 2019129

The 2005 construction decision of Flamanville-3 (FL3) was mainly motivated by theindustry’s attempt to confront the serious problem of maintaining nuclear competence. In
December 2007, EDF started construction on FL3 with a scheduled startup date of 2012. The
project has been plagued with detailed-design issues and quality-control problems, including
basic concrete and welding similar to those at the Olkiluoto (OL3) project in Finland, whichstarted two-and-a-half years earlier. These problems never stopped and in April 2018, it was
discovered that the main welds in the secondary steam system did not conform with thetechnical specifications; so by the end of May 2018 EDF stated that repair work might again
cause “a delay of several months to the start-up of the Flamanville 3 European Pressurized
Water Reactor (EPR) reactor.”130 In fact, the delay will be several years, and the startup of FL3
is now not expected before the end of 2022.

126 - In a core-melt accident (like at Fukushima Daiichi 1, 2, and 3), the core-catcher is supposed to avoid molten-fuel interaction withconcrete and make sure that it does not burn through the concrete and get into the ground.
127 - ASN, “Réexamen périodique associé aux quatrièmes visites décennales des réacteurs du palier 900 MWe”, Presentation at a
meeting of the local information committee on the major energy facilities at Tricastin, Commission locale d’information des grandséquipements énergétiques du Tricastin (CLIGEET), 4 July 2018 (in French), see https://www.ladrome.fr/sites/default/files/5.2_
presentation_asn_vd4.pdf, accessed 23 March 2019.
128 - ASN, “L’ASN formule trois attentes à l’occasion de ses vœux à la presse”, Notice of Information and video, 29 January 2019
(in French), see https://www.asn.fr/Informer/Actualites/L-ASN-formule-ses-attentes-a-l-occasion-des-voeux-a-la-presse, accessed
25 March 2019.
129 - EDF, “Half-Year Results 2019”, 25 July 2019.
130 - EDF, “Quality deviations on certain welds of the secondary circuit at the Flamanville EPR: the investigation continues”,
31 May 2018, see https://www.edf.fr/en/the-edf-group/dedicated-sections/journalists/all-press-releases/quality-deviations-on-certainwelds-of-the-secondary-circuit-at-the-flamanville-epr-the-investigation-continues, accessed 7 June 2018.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

In a letter of 19 June 2019, ASN informed EDF that “in the light of the numerous deviations in
the production of the Flamanville EPR penetration welds, they would have to be repaired”131.
ASN pointed out in the letter, signed by the Chairman:
ASN considers that, given the number and nature of the deviations affecting thesewelds, their break can no longer be considered as highly improbable and that a breakpreclusion approach can no longer be applied to them. [Bold font in the original.]132

ASN explains on its website:
In 2018, EDF had proposed an approach aiming to justify maintaining these welds as they
were. ASN then considered that the outcome of such an approach was uncertain and had
asked EDF to begin preparatory operations prior to repair of the welds located between thetwo walls of the reactor containment [consult information notice published on 03/10/2018].
EDF’s approach was reviewed by ASN, with technical support from IRSN [French Institute for
Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety], including consultation of the Advisory Committee
for Nuclear Pressure Equipment (GP ESPN) [consult information notice published on
11/04/2019].

Until the latest discovery, FL3 was expected to start generating power in May 2019, reachingfull capacity in November 2019. 133 The official cost estimate for FL3 stood at €10.5 billion(US$12.3 billion) as of 2015134 . After a series of additional mishaps and delays, in July 2018, theowner-builder stated: “The EDF group has therefore adjusted the Flamanville EPR scheduleand construction costs accordingly. The loading of nuclear fuel is now scheduled for the
4th quarter in 2019 and the target construction costs have been revised from €10.5 billion[US$12.3 billion] to €10.9 billion [US$12.7 billion]”.135 EDF revised its position in July 2019
and announced that, concerning the FL3 steam line repair work, it “expects to communicate
the schedule and cost implications of the selected scenario in the next few months”, alreadycertain that “commissioning cannot be expected before the end of 2022”.136
This latest delay raises another legal problem. The construction license, which had already been
extended in 2017, will run out on 10 April 2020.137 On 23 July 2019, EDF filed a new application
to amend the construction license.138 This time, it will likely entail a new public enquiry.
FL3 is now at least a decade behind schedule.
131 - ASN, “Deviations on the Flamanville EPR steam lines: the eight penetration welds will have to be repaired”, Information Notice,
20 June 2019, see http://www.french-nuclear-safety.fr/Information/News-releases/Deviations-on-the-Flamanville-EPR-steam-linesthe-eight-penetration-welds-will-have-to-be-repaired, accessed 20 June 2019.
132 - ASN, “Letter to the Chairman of EDF”, 19 June 2019, see http://www.french-nuclear-safety.fr/Media/Files/letter-CODEP-CLG2019-027253-UK-ASN-EDF-VVP-EPR, accessed 28 July 2019.
133 - Bate Felix, Benjamin Mallet, “L’EPR de Flamanville attendu à pleine puissance en novembre 2019”, Reuters, 11 July 2017.
134 - EDF, “2015 Management Report—Group Results”, 13 May 2016.
135 - EDF, “Welds in the main secondary system of the Flamanville EPR: EDF sets up corrective actions and adjusts schedule and target
construction costs”, 25 July 2018, see https://www.edf.fr/en/edf/welds-in-the-main-secondary-system-of-the-flamanville-epr-edf-setsup-corrective-actions-and-adjusts-schedule-and-target-construction-costs, accessed 25 July 2018.
136 - EDF, “Half-Year Results 2019”, 25 July 2019.
137 - Ministry of the Environment, Energy and the Sea, in charge of International Relations on Climate, “Décret n° 2017-379 du
23 mars 2017 modifiant le décret n° 2007-534 du 10 avril 2007 autorisant la création de l’installation nucléaire de base dénommée
Flamanville 3, comportant un réacteur nucléaire de type EPR, sur le site de Flamanville (Manche)”, 24 March 2017 (in French),see https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichTexte.do;jsessionid=0385C6ECDD66D0F6D6896702526A28A5.tpdila22v_2?cidTexte=JORFTE
XT000034264985&dateTexte=&oldAction=rechJO&categorieLien=id&idJO=JORFCONT000034264920, accessed 28 July 2019.
138 - EDF, “Half-Year Results 2019”, 25 July 2019.

| 75

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Other Ongoing Quality Issues
In April 2015, the French Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN) revealed that the bottom piece andthe lid of the FL3 pressure vessel had “very serious” defects.139 Chemical and mechanical tests“revealed the presence of a zone in which there was a high carbon concentration, leading
to lower than expected mechanical toughness values”.140 Both pieces were fabricated andassembled by AREVA in France, while the center piece was forged by Japan Steel Works (JSW)in Japan. ASN stated then that the same fabrication procedure by AREVA’s Creusot Forge
was applied to “certain calottes” (also called bottom heads and closure heads) of the twopressure vessels made for the two EPRs under construction at Taishan in China, while the EPR
under construction in Finland was entirely manufactured in Japan. AREVA’s challenge wasto prove that, although clearly below technical specifications, the EPR pressure vessels could
withstand any major transient. After a lengthy and controversial re-qualification procedure(see WNISR2017 for details), ASN released its official judgement on the issue considering the“mechanical characteristics” of vessel cover and bottom “adequate”. However, ASN “considers
that the use of the closure head must be limited in time” and as a new closure head could beavailable by 2024, the current piece “shall not be operated beyond that date”.141
In a more recent development, ASN investigations at the Framatome subcontractor JSW’s
factory in Muroran, Japan, that manufactures the replacement vessel head for FL3 andcomponents for replacement steam generators for French 1300 MW reactors, revealed someserious flaws, including:ɆɆ The incapacity to prove a constant temperature during the forging process;ɆɆ The use of pencils in process documentation;
ɆɆ Hand-written, unsigned, undated corrections on quality documentation.142

Ongoing Fallout from Creusot Forge Affair
Meanwhile, the finding of carbon segregations in the pressure vessel of FL3 had raised
concerns about the possibility that other components could have been fabricated below
technical specifications due to poor quality processes at Creusot Forge.143 On 25 April 2016,
AREVA informed ASN that “irregularities in the manufacturing checks”, the quality-control
procedures, were detected at about 400 pieces fabricated since 1969, about 50 of which would
be installed in the French currently operating reactor fleet. The “irregularities” included“inconsistencies, modifications or omissions in the production files, concerning manufacturing

139 - Ludovic Dupin, “Le cri d’alarme de l’ASN sur le nucléaire français”, Usine Nouvelle, 20 January 2016 (in French),see http://www.usinenouvelle.com/article/le-cri-d-alarme-de-l-asn-sur-le-nucleaire-francais.N374729, accessed 11 June 2016.
140 - ASN, “Flamanville EPR reactor vessel manufacturing anomalies”, Press Release, 7 April 2015, see http://www.french-nuclearsafety.fr/Information/News-releases/Flamanville-EPR-reactor-vessel-manufacturing-anomalies, accessed 14 August 2017.
141 - ASN, “ASN presents its position regarding the Flamanville EPR reactor vessel anomaly”, Press Release, 28 June 2017,see http://www.french-nuclear-safety.fr/Information/News-releases/ASN-presents-its-position-regarding-the-Flamanville-EPRreactor-vessel-anomaly, accessed 31 July 2017.
142 - ASN, “Lettre au Président de Framatome”, 4 January 2019.
143 - The regulation on pressurized components of nuclear facilities changed in 2005. In particular, it now requires that mechanicalproperties should be verified in every area of the components, instead of limiting it to the most sensitive areas as it previously was the
norm.

| 76

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 77

parameters or test results”.144 The most serious regulatory violation led ASN to withdraw thecertificate of a replacement steam generator introduced in Fessenheim-2 in 2012, because theforging process of its central part did not comply with qualified methods, and this was coveredin the documentation submitted to ASN and EDF, leaving the reactor shut down between
June 2016145 and April 2018. According to EDF, in total, it has detected 1,775 “anomalies” inparts that were integrated into 46 reactors.146 According to EDF, as of the end of January 2019,54 reactors had obtained ASN’s green light for restart “confirming the operational safety of theconcerned components”.147 This means that in the case of the remaining four units ASN still
has not confirmed the safety of the respective incriminated parts.

The Ongoing Tricastin Canal Embankment Case
The Tricastin Nuclear Power Plant

Photo: www.asn.fr

On 27 September 2017, ASN required that “EDF temporarily shut down the four reactors of the
Tricastin nuclear power plant as rapidly as possible”, because of the “risk of failure of a part ofthe embankment of the Donzère-Mondragon canal with regard to the most severe earthquakes
144 - ASN, “AREVA has informed ASN of irregularities concerning components manufactured in its Creusot Forge plant”, 4 May 2016,see http://www.french-nuclear-safety.fr/Information/News-releases/Irregularities-concerning-components-manufactured-in-itsCreusot-Forge-plant, accessed 14 August 2017.
145 - Pierre-Franck Chevet, “Décision n° CODEP-CLG-2016-02945 du 18 juillet 2016 du Président de l’Autorité de sûreté nucléaire
suspendant le certificat d’épreuve du générateur de vapeur n° 335 fabriqué par AREVA NP”, ASN, République Française, 18 July 2016
(in French), see https://www.asn.fr/content/download/105596/795168/version/1/file/Décision n° CODEP-CLG-2016-02945 du 18 juillet
2016.pdf, accessed 10 August 2017.
146 - These numbers and the following three paragraphs from EDF, “Dossiers de fabrication”, 17 July 2018 (in French),see https://www.edf.fr/groupe-edf/nos-energies/nucleaire/segregation-carbone-et-dossiers-de-fabrication-creusot-forge/dossiers-defabrication, accessed 20 July 2018.
147 - EDF, “Reference Document 2018”, April 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 78

studied in the nuclear safety case.”148 ASN’s technical backup Institute for Radiation Protection
and Nuclear Safety (IRSN) released a briefing that stated that the plant had not been designed
to withstand flooding from the canal. Such an event would “lead to the total loss of cooling of
the fuel in the core and in the spent fuel pool of every reactor leading to the meltdown of thatfuel”.149
On 5 December 2017, ASN validated the embankment repair work carried out by EDF andgranted permission for restart of the Tricastin reactors.150 On 25 June 2019, ASN requested
additional work to reinforce the embankment to be carried out by the end of 2022 at the latest.
Until then, the ASN requests EDF to implement increased embankment surveillance andguarantee the availability of human and material means to repair potential damage stemmingfrom an earthquake.151

GERMANY FOCUS
Germany’s remaining seven nuclear reactors generated 71.9 TWh net in 2018, almost matching
the 72.2 TWh of 2017, but less than half of the generation of 162.4 TWh in record year 2001.
Nuclear plants provided a stable 11.7 percent of Germany’s electricity generation, representing
little more than one-third of the historic maximum of 30.8 percent in 1997. One more reactor(Philippsburg-2) will be closed at the end of 2019, according to the nuclear phase-out legislationthat will see all reactors closed by the end of 2022 (see Table 4 for details). The average loadfactor remained stable at 86.7 percent, allowing Germany to keep its third rank in the world(behind Romania and Finland). Three German reactors are still among the ten best lifetime
load factors. All seven units that generated power in 2018 are in the Top Ten lifetime electricity
generators in the world, five of which are holding positions one to five. (Only three U.S. reactors
made it into the Top Ten alongside the German units).152“

Renewables cover 16.7% of final energy in Germany,
nuclear covers 17.4% of final energy in France.

”

Germany decided immediately after 3/11 to close eight of the oldest153 of its 17 operating
reactors and to phase out the remaining nine until 2022, effectively reactivating a “consensus
agreement” negotiated a decade earlier. This choice was implemented by a conservative, pro148 - ASN, “Insufficient seismic resistance of a part of the Donzère-Mondragon canal embankment: ASN imposes temporary shutdownof the Tricastin nuclear power plant”, Press Release, 28 September 2017, see http://www.french-nuclear-safety.fr/Information/Newsreleases/ASN-imposes-temporary-shutdown-of-the-Tricastin-nuclear-power-plant, accessed 15 July 2018.
149 - IRSN, “Protection du site du Tricastin contre les risques d’inondation—Comportement des digues du canal deDonzère‑Mondragon en cas de séisme”, 28 September 2017 (in French), see http://www.irsn.fr/FR/Actualites_presse/Actualites/
Documents/IRSN_NI-Tricastin-Digues-canal-donzere-seisme_20170928.pdf, accessed 15 July 2018.
150 - ASN, “ASN allows restart of the reactors of the Tricastin nuclear power plant (NPP)”, 5 December 2017,see http://www.french-nuclear-safety.fr/Information/News-releases/ASN-allows-restart-of-the-reactors-of-the-Tricastin-nuclearpower-plant-NPP, accessed 22 June 2018.
151 - ASN, “Décison n°2019-DC-0674 de l’ASN du 25 juin 2019”, 10 July 2019 (in French),see https://www.asn.fr/Reglementer/Bulletin-officiel-de-l-ASN/Installations-nucleaires/Decisions-individuelles/Decison-n-2019-DC0674-de-l-ASN-du-25-juin-2019, accessed 27 July 2019.
152 - NEI, “Load factors to end December 2018”, June 2019, Caroline Peachey, personal communication, email dated 10 June 2019.
153 - Including the Krümmel and Brunsbüttel reactors that by then had not generated power for two almost two and four years
respectively.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 79business, and, until the Fukushima disaster, very pro-nuclear Government, led by physicist
Chancellor Angela Merkel, with no political party dissenting, which makes it virtually
irreversible under any political constellation. On 6 June 2011, the Bundestag passed a seven‑partenergy transition legislation almost by consensus and it came into force on 6 August 2011(see earlier WNISR editions for details).
Table 4 | Legal Closure Dates for German Nuclear Reactors 2011–2022
Reactor Name
(Type, Net Capacity)

Owner/Operator

First Grid
Connection

End of License(latest closure date)

Biblis-A (PWR, 1167 MW)
Biblis-B (PWR, 1240 MW)
Brunsbüttel (BWR, 771 MW)
Isar-1 (BWR, 878 MW)
Krümmel (BWR, 1346 MW)
Neckarwestheim-1 (PWR, 785 MW)
Philippsburg-1 (BWR, 890 MW)
Unterweser (BWR, 1345 MW)

RWE
RWE
KKW Brunsbüttela
PreussenElektra
KKW Krümmelb
EnBW
EnBW
PreussenElektra

1974
1976
1976
1977
1983
1976
1979
1978

6 August 2011

Grafenrheinfeld (PWR, 1275 MW)

PreussenElektra

1981

31 December 2015
(closed 27 June 2015)

Gundremmingen-B (BWR, 1284 MW)

KKW Gundremmingenc

1984

31 December 2017

Philippsburg-2 (PWR, 1402 MW)

EnBW

1984

31 December 2019d

Brokdorf (PWR, 1410 MW)
Grohnde (PWR, 1360 MW)
Gundremmingen-C (BWR, 1288 MW)

PreussenElektra/Vattenfall
PreussenElektra
KKW Gundremmingen

1986
1984
1984

31 December 2021

Isar-2 (PWR, 1410 MW)
Emsland (PWR, 1329 MW)
Neckarwestheim-2 (PWR, 1310 MW)

PreussenElektra
KKW Lippe-Emse
EnBW

1988
1988
1989

31 December 2022

Notes

Sources: Atomgesetz, 31 July 2011, Atomforum Kernenergie May 2011; IAEA-PRIS 2012

Krümmel and Brunsbüttel were officially closed in 2011 but had not been providing electricity to the grid since 2009 and 2007
respectively
PWR=Pressurized Water Reactor; BWR=Boiling Water Reactor; RWE= Rheinisch-Westfälisches Elektrizitätswerk Power AG
a - Vattenfall 66.67%, E.ON 33.33%

b - Vattenfall 50%, E.ON 50%.

d - E.ON 80%, Vattenfall 20%.		

e - RWE 87.5%, E.ON 12.5%.

c - RWE 75%, E.ON 25%.

Renewables generated 226 TWh representing 35 percent of gross national electricity
generation or 38 percent of gross national power consumption in 2018, about half of it fromonshore/offshore wind power, which alone, since 2017, by far outgenerates nuclear power. In
2017, renewables covered 15.9 percent of Germany’s total final energy consumption.154 To put
this into perspective, in France, nuclear power covered 17 percent of final energy in 2017.155
Provisional figures for 2018 show respective shares of 16.7 percent for German renewables156
and 17.4 percent for French nuclear.157 As renewables accelerate their expansion beyond thepower sector throughout the German economy, their share in final energy has increased by
154 - Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, “Development of Renewable Energy Sources in Germany 2018”, February 2019.
155 - General Commission for Sustainable Development, “Bilan énergétique de la France pour 2017”, French Ministry for the Ecologicaland Inclusive Transition, February 2019.
156 - Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, “Renewable Energy Sources in Germany 2018—Key information of the year2018 at a glance”, February 2019.
157 - General Commission for Sustainable Development, “Bilan énergétique de la France en 2018–Données provisoires”, French
Ministry for the Ecological and Inclusive Transition, April 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 80

more than 5 percentage points since 2010, while the French nuclear share remained aboutstable (16.9 percent in 2010).
Fossil-fuel-based generation in Germany continued to drop in 2018—hard coal by 10.4 percent,lignite by 2 percent and natural gas by 3.8 percent. Renewables were again by far the largest
contributor to the power mix (gross) and supplied more than lignite (22.5 percent) and hardcoal (12.9 percent) together, while natural gas also contributed 12.9 percent.158
In 2017, Germany’s net power exports hit a new record at 55 TWh. In 2018, the net exports
stood at 51.2 TWh, the fourth year in a row that the trade surplus exceeded 50 TWh.
Figure 27 summarizes the main developments of the German power system between 2010—
the last year prior to the post-3/11 closure of the eight oldest nuclear reactors—and 2018.
Figure 27 | Main Developments of the German Power System Between 2010 and 2018

Main Evolution of the German Power System Between 2010 and 2018
in TWhNet Export
Increase
33

Fossil Fuel
Reduction-43.5

Consumption
Decrease-20

Renewables
Increase
121

120

Nuclear
Reduction
-64.5

90
60

Nuclear and fossil fuelgeneration reductions
as well as export increase...

... are covered byconsumption decrease andrenewable production increase.

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

30
0

159

Source: WNISR based on AGEB, 2019

It shows that the remarkable increase of renewable electricity generation (+120.9 TWh) and the
reduction in domestic consumption (–20.3 TWh) were far more than sufficient to compensate
for the reduction of nuclear generation (64.6 TWh), enabling also a reduction in power
generation from fossil fuels (–43.5 TWh) and a threefold increase in net exports (+33.5 TWh)(without which the fossil-fueled generation would have been even lower). Within the fossil‑fuelgenerating segment, for the first time in 2018, all primary fuel-uses decreased compared to theprevious year and remained below the 2010 level:
ɆɆ Lignite peaked in 2013 and then declined to just below the 2010 level (–0.4 TWh);ɆɆ Hard coal also peaked in 2013 then dropped significantly (–33.8 TWh or –28.9 percent
below 2010);

158 - AGEB, “Energieverbrauch in Deutschland im Jahr 2018”, Working Group on Energy Balances, German Institute for Economic
Research (DIW), February 2019, op. cit.
159 - AGEB, “Bruttostromerzeugung in Deutschland ab 1990 nach Energieträgern”, Working Group on Energy Balances, German
Institute for Economic Research (DIW), 6 March 2019 (in German), see https://ag-energiebilanzen.de/index.php?article_
id=29&fileName=20181214_brd_stromerzeugung1990-2018.pdf, accessed 24 July 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 ɆɆ Natural gas peaked in 2010 and then fluctuated to remain on the lower end (–5.9 TWh or
6.6 percent below 2010)
ɆɆ Oil was relatively insignificant and dropped further (–3.5 TWh or 40.2 percent since 2010).
Greenhouse gas emissions from the power sector dropped again by 3.7 percent in 2018, whilecarbon intensity decreased from 489 gCO2/kWh to 472 gCO2/kWh.160

JAPAN FOCUS
A total of nine reactors are currently operating in Japan. No additional reactors restarted
since WNISR2018 under the revised Nuclear Regulatory Authority’s (NRA) safety guidelines,
whereas four had done so in the year to May 2018.
One reactor, PWR Ikata-3, which restarted in 2016 and had been in operation until
October 2017, was shut down for nearly one year following a first of its kind high court rulingin December 2017 (see WNISR2018). Scheduled to return to operation in January 2018, theHiroshima High Court issued a citizens-sought injunction against the operation of the reactor
on the grounds of seismic and volcano risks. The plant is at risk from the massive Nankai
Trough and the Median Tectonic Line fault belt—Japan’s largest-class and longest fault
zone, which runs near the Ikata plant site. On 25 September 2018, the Hiroshima High Court
reversed its decision,161 lifted the injunction, and permitted the Ikata plant to resume operation
on 27 October 2018.162
Two reactors were announced for permanent closure since WNISR2018. Tohoku ElectricPower Company announced on 25 October 2018 that the BWR Onagawa-1, that had not
produced power since 2011, was to remain permanently off grid.163 Kyushu Electric Power
Company on 9 April 2019 issued a formal notification of the closure of its Pressurized Water
Reactor (PWR) Genkai‑2.164 The Ikata-2 PWR moved to formal closure in October 2018 when
the utility, Shikoku Electric Power Company, notified the NRA.165 In March 2018, the utility
had announced the Board of Directors’ decision for the permanent closure of the 36‑year‑old
unit.166
160 - Agora Energiewende, “Die Energiewende im Stromsektor: Stand der Dinge 2018—Rückblick auf die wesentlichen Entwicklungensowie Ausblick auf 2019”, January 2019 (in German), see https://www.agora-energiewende.de/fileadmin2/Projekte/2018/
Jahresauswertung_2018/125_Agora-JAW-2018_WEB.pdf , accessed 24 July 2019.
161 - Bloomberg, “Japan Court Allows Nuclear Reactor to Reopen in Boost to Abe’s Energy Push”, 25 September 2019,see https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-09-25/japan-court-rules-shikoku-electric-can-restart-nuclear-reactor, accessed 25 April 2019.
162 - The plaintiffs to the Hiroshima High Court contended that the risks from volcanic eruption had not been fully addressed by
Shikoku Electric. Japan Times, “Shikoku Electric restarts Ikata nuclear reactor following failed court challenges”, 27 October 2018,see https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2018/10/27/national/shikoku-electric-restarts-ikata-nuclear-reactor-following-failed-courtchallenges/#.XN10HJNKjOQ, accessed 26 April 2019.
163 - Japan Times, “Tohoku Electric to scrap aging No. 1 unit at Onagawa nuclear plant”, 25 October 2018,see https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2018/10/25/national/tohoku-electric-scrap-aging-no-1-unit-onagawa-nuclear-plant/#.
XNLolZNKjOQ, accessed 3 August 2019.
164 - Kyushu Electric Power Company, “Notification on the abolition of Genkai Nuclear Power Station Unit No. 2”, 9 April 2019
(in Japanese), see http://www.kyuden.co.jp/press_190409-1.html.
165 - WNA, “Shikoku outlines plans for decommissioning Ikata 2”, 17 October 2018,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Shikoku-outlines-plans-for-decommissioning-Ikata-2, accessed 3 August 2019.
166 - WNISR, “Permanent Closure of Ikata-2 Brings Total Shutdowns to One Third of Pre-Fukushima Capacity in Japan”,
27 March 2018, see https://www.worldnuclearreport.org/Permanent-Closure-of-Ikata-2-Brings-Total-Shutdowns-to-One-Third-of-Pre.html,
accessed 10 May 2019.

| 81

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 82

As of 1 July 2019, utilities have declared 17 commercial reactors to be decommissioned
since the Fukushima Daiichi accident began in March 2011, together with the Prototype
Monju Fast Breeder Reactor (FBR). This means that as of 1 July 2019, 24 reactors remain in
Long‑Term Outage (LTO) since none of these have generated electricity during recent years.
WNISR has considered for years that the four reactors at Fukushima Daini will never restart.
(See Figure 30 and Annex 3 for a detailed overview of the Japanese Reactor Program).
Figure 28 | Rise and Fall of the Japanese Nuclear Program

Rise and Fall of the Japanese Nuclear Program - 1963 to July 2019
Fleet (in GW) and Electricity Generation (in TWh)
Nuclear Fleet in GW

Electricity Generation in TWh
300

60

Generation
50

250

40

200

30

150

Capacity
20

100

10

50
© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

00
63 1965

Note

1970

1975

1980

1985

1990

1995

2000

2005

2010

2015

7/2019Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

This Figure takes into account LTO status for Kashiwazaki Kariwa Units 1, 5, 6 and 7 in the wake of the Niigata Earthquake, not shown in previous versions of
this graph.

In 2018, nuclear power produced 49.3 TWh, contributing 6.2 percent of the nation’s annual
output compared to 29.3 TWh and 3.6 percent electricity share in 2017, and 17.5 TWh and2.2 percent respectively in 2016 (see Figure 28). This is by far the largest share of nuclear
generated electricity in Japan since 2011 (18 percent), compared with 29 percent in 2010 andthe historic high of 36 percent in 1998.
As WNISR 2018 reported, restart of additional reactors was not expected in the year to
July 2019 and there are now further delays in the restart program. Reactors that were planned
for restart in the second quarter of 2019, specifically Takahama-1 and -2, have now been delayed
into 2020 and 2021 respectively, while upgrading work at Mihama-3 will not be completed
until July 2020, with restart now slated for August 2020, though further delays to all these arepossible.167
167 - KEPCO, “About the state of implementation of safety improvement measures construction of Takahama power plant 1 and 2
and Mihama power plant 3”, 4 February 2019 (in Japanese), see https://www.kepco.co.jp/corporate/pr/2019/0204_2j.html; andKEPCO, “State of Implemetation of safety improvement measures construction—Takahama Units 1 and 2, and Mihama Unit 3”,
4 February 2019, see https://www.kepco.co.jp/corporate/pr/2019/pdf/0204_2j_01.pdf, both accessed July 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

The industry during the past year has been making important progress in creating favorable
electricity market conditions that if implemented will provide significant financial incentives
for extending reactor operations beyond 40 years. Specifically, a capacity market will operate inJapan from 2020. The principal beneficiaries of this will be the utilities operating nuclear power
plants and coal generation plants.168 At the same time, an unexpected development arose in
April 2019 when the Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA) voted to impose a strict operational
condition on reactors that could lead to the closure of multiple reactors starting in 2020.169
The decision was due to utilities notifying the NRA that they would not meet the deadline forcompletion of anti-terrorist measures created post-Fukushima. Thus, while Japanese reactors
are currently generating the most electricity since 2011, the industry faces the prospect ofextended shutdown of these reactors from 2020. As in previous years, a consistent majorityof Japanese citizens, when polled, continue to oppose the sustained reliance on nuclear power,
support its early phase-out, and remain opposed to the restart of reactors.170
With retail market liberalization, there has been a noticeable loss of market share by nuclear
utilities. The alternative to shutting down this capacity (reactor closures) was to create thecapacity market where they will sell the surplus kilowatts to the wholesale electricity market.
It is expected that a separate capacity market will be created in each of the regions where nine
nuclear utilities plus Okinawa operate.171 With longterm contracts and payments, the effectwill be to provide additional long-term revenue and incentivize continued reactor operation,
including lifetime extensions.172 On the other hand, economic headwind from renewable energy
competition and efficient uses of electricity could increase (see Climate Change and Nuclear
Power).

Reactor Closures
The 11 commercial Japanese reactors now confirmed to be decommissioned (not including
the Monju Fast Breeder Reactor (FBR) or the ten Fukushima reactors) had a total generating
capacity of 6.4 GW, representing 14.7 percent of Japan’s operating nuclear capacity as ofMarch 2011.173 Together with the ten Fukushima units, the total rises to 21 reactors and 15.2 GW
or 34.8 percent of operating nuclear capacity prior to 3/11 that has now been permanently
removed from operations (see Table 5).

168 - Matsukubo Hajime, “The Capacity Market: An overview and issues”, Citizen’s Nuclear Information Center, 3 June 2019,see http://www.cnic.jp/english/?p=4435, accessed 8 July 2019.
169 - Noriaki Koshikawa, Kazunari Hanawa, “Japan nuclear plants face shutdown over delayed anti-terror steps”, Nikkei Asian Review,
25 April 2019, see https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/Japan-nuclear-plants-face-shutdown-over-delayed-anti-terror-steps, accessed
3 August 2019.
170 - Simon Denyer, “As Japan’s leader, Junichiro Koizumi backed nuclear power. Now he’s a major foe.”, Washington Post,
10 March 2019, see https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/as-japans-leader-junichiro-koizumi-backed-nuclearpower-now-hes-a-major-foe/2019/03/09/d1106ee8-4037-11e9-85ad-779ef05fd9d8_story.html?utm_term=.5c32633bfb75, accessed
3 August 2019.
171 - Edward Kee, “Japan - Nuclear Power and Electricity Reform”, Nuclear Economics Consulting Group, NEGC Commentary 26,
26 February 2019, see https://nuclear-economics.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/26-Japan-nuclear-power-and-electricity-reform-update.pdf,
accessed 8 July 2019.
172 - Nakanishi Kiyotaka, “Power generation sector protection system is strengthened”, Nikkei Energy Next,
18 April 2019 (in Japanese), see https://tech.nikkeibp.co.jp/dm/atcl/feature/15/031400070/041600096/?P=1, accessed 8 July 2019.
173 - Based on a total installed capacity of 43.6 GW (not including the 246 MW Monju FBR and Kashiwazaki Kariwa 2–4) which were in
LTO in March 2011.

| 83

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 84

Table 5 | Official Reactor Closures Post-3/11 in Japan
Operator

TEPCO

KEPCO

Capacity
MW

StartupYear

ClosureAnnouncementa
dd/mm/yy

Official
Closure Dateb
dd/mm/yy

Last
Production

Agec

Fukushima Daiichi-1 (BWR)

439

1970

-

19/04/122011

40

Fukushima Daiichi-2 (BWR)

760

1973

-

19/04/122011

37

Fukushima Daiichi-3 (BWR)

760

1974

-

19/04/122011

36

Fukushima Daiichi-4 (BWR)

760

1978

-

19/04/122011

33

Fukushima Daiichi-5 (BWR)

760

1977

19/12/13

31/01/14

2011

34

Fukushima Daiichi-6 (BWR)

1 067

1979

19/12/13

31/01/14

2011

32

Mihama-1 (PWR)

320

1970

17/03/15

27/04/15

201040

Mihama-2 (PWR)

470

1972

17/03/15

27/04/15

2011

40

ReactorOhi-1 (PWR)

1 120

1977

22/12/17

01/03/18

2011

34

Ohi-2 (PWR)

1 120

1978

22/12/17

01/03/18

2011

33

Genkai-1 (PWR)

529

1975

18/03/15

27/04/15

2011

37

Genkai-2 (PWR)

529

1980

13/02/19

13/02/13

2011

31

Ikata-1 (PWR)

538

1977

25/03/16

10/05/16

2011

35

Ikata- 2 (PWR)

538

1981

d

27/03/18

27/03/18

2012

30

JAEA

Monju (FBR)

246

1995

12/2016e

05/12/17

LTSf since 1995

-

JAPC

Tsuruga -1 (BWR)

340

1969

17/03/15

27/04/15

2011

41

CHUGOKU

Shimane-1 (PWR)

439

1974

18/03/15

30/04/15

2010

37

TOHOKU

Onagawa-1 (BWR)

498

1983

25/10/18

21/12/18g

2011

27

KYUSHUSHIKOKUTOTAL: 18 Reactors /11.2 GWe
Notes

Sources: JAIF, Japan Nuclear Safety Institute, compiled by WNISR, 2019a - Unless otherwise specified, all announcement dates from Japan Nuclear Safety Institute, “Licensing status for the Japanese nuclear facilities”,
12 February 2019, see http://www.genanshin.jp/english/facility/map/, accessed 30 May 2019.
b – Unless otherwise specified, all closure dates from individual reactors’ page via JAIF, “NPPs in Japan”, Japan Atomic Industrial Forum,
see http://www.jaif.or.jp/en/npps-in-japan/, as of 30 May 2019.
c - Note that WNISR considers the age from first grid connection to last production day.
d - WNN, “Shikoku decides to retire Ikata 2”, 27 April 2018,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/C-Shikoku-decides-to-retire-Ikata-2-2703184.html, accessed 22 July 2018.
e - The Mainichi, “Japan decides to scrap trouble-plagued Monju prototype reactor”, 21 December 2016,see http://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20161221/p2g/00m/0dm/050000c, accessed 21 December 2016.
f - The Monju reactor was officially in Long-Term Shutdown or LTS (IAEA-Category Long Term Shutdown) since December 1995.
g – The decision to close the reactor was announced in October 2018, but not followed by an official closure announcement. However, IAEA-PRIS lists thereactors as closed on 21 December 2018. The JAIF website does not provide a closure date for the reactor.

The revision opened the way for utilities to calculate their decommissioning costs ininstallments over a period of ten years.
In October 2017, the Federation of Electric Power Companies (FEPC) reported a year‑on‑year
increase of ¥500 billion (US$4.4 billion) to a total of ¥4 trillion ($US35 billion) spent or
assigned by nuclear utilities to cover the costs of safety retrofits to their reactor fleet.174
WNISR 2018 projected that the 38-year-old 529 MW Genkai-2 and the 35-year-old 498 MW
Onagawa-1 units would be likely next candidates for decommissioning.
A senior manager for Genkai-2 owner Kyushu Electric stated in February 2019 that they
were “now considering whether to restart or decommission the reactor from an economic
174 - NW, “Safety costs might lead to more Japan nuclear units being retired: analysts”, 16 November 2017.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 85

and technical view point”.175 This was followed in April 2019 by the decision for permanent
closure.176 The utility had not submitted the reactor for review by the NRA, concentrating on
approval and restart of its two newer and larger units Genkai-3 and -4, as well as Sendai‑1
and -2. While the host prefecture for the Genkai plant has been generally supportive of nuclear
power, an official for Saga Prefecture was cited by Platts as stating that “Kyushu Electric should
recognize our policy”, which was “reduce reliance on nuclear power generation as much as
possible,” in line with the central government plan for the power mix.177
In the case of Onagawa-1, Tohoku Electric officials had stated in 2017, that they “intend torestart it” but “haven’t reached a conclusion, whether we can do so, because we have to evaluate
safety costs and a return from that investment.”178 The utility cited the costs of post-Fukushimasafety measures and the relatively small output of the reactor that made a decision to restart
unprofitable. On 25 October 2018, Tohoku Electric President Hiroya Harada informed the
Miyagi Prefecture Governor Yoshihiro Murai of their decision to close Onagawa‑1, which was
based on “consideration [of] technical restrictions associated with additional safety measures,
output and the years in use.”179
Figure 29 | Age Distribution of Japanese Fleet

Age of Japanese Nuclear Fleet
as of 1 July 2019

9 in operati
onReactor Age

16

0–10 Years
11–20 Years
21–30 Years
31–40 Years
41 Years and Over

8

4
1

33 Reactors(24 in LTO)
Mean Age28.4 Years

4

50 Number of Reactors
by Age Class© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

Future announcements on formal decommissioning are expected in 2019. In mid-June 2018,
more than seven years after the triple reactor meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi (1) nuclear
plant, Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc (TEPCO) finally bowed to the inevitable
and announced it was considering the decommissioning of the four reactors at Fukushima

175 - NW, “Japan’s Kyushu electric likely to retire 559-Mw Genkai-2, analysts say”, 7 February 2019.
176 - Kyushu Electric Power, “Decision of decommissioning of the Genkai Nuclear Power Unit No.2”, Press Release, 13 February 2019,see http://www.kyuden.co.jp/en_press_190213-1.html, accessed 13 February 2019.
177 - NW, “Japan’s Kyushu electric likely to retire 559-Mw Genkai-2, analysts say”, 7 February 2019.
178 - Platts, “Nuclear News Flashes”, 26 April 2018.
179 - The Japan Times, “Tohoku Electric to scrap aging No. 1 unit at Onagawa nuclear plant”, 25 October 2018,see https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2018/10/25/national/tohoku-electric-scrap-aging-no-1-unit-onagawa-nuclear-plant/#.
XNLolZNKjOQ, accessed 25 April 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 86

Daini (2).180 While WNISR over the past years has classified the four reactors as closed, it is
only on 31 July 2019 that TEPCO formally announced the final decision to decommission theplant.181
Figure 30 | Status of Japanese Reactor Fleet

Status of Reactors Officially Operational in Japan vs WNISR Assessment
in Units, as of year end 2005-2018 and mid-2019
Kashiwazaki-Kariwa-2–4 in LTO;
(never restarted after
Niigata Earthquake)
Units 1, 6 & 7 in LTO
until restart in 2009 - 2010

Kashiwazaki-Kariwa-5
in LTO until restartin 201050

40

1 July 2019
Officially Operating
37 Reactors

2011
Fukushima
Daiichi 1–4
closed2014
Fukushima
Daiichi-5 & -6
(2011)

2016
Ikata-1(2011)

2015
5 reactors :2 (2010) &3 (2011)WNISR Status
9 Operating:Sendai-1 & -2,
Ikata-3, Takahama-3 & -4
Ohi-3 & -4, Genkai-3 & -4

2018
Ikata-2(2012)
Ohi-1 & -2
Onagawa-1*(2011)
2019
Genkai-2(2011)

4 Closed:
Fukushima Daini 1–4*
24 in LTO of which
Kashiwazaki-Kariwa 2–4
since 2007

YEAR: Officially closed(YEAR): last production year,
WNISR Closure

30

StatusOperatingLong-Term Outageof which since2007 Earthquake

20

10

WNISR Closed

0 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

* To be decomissioned, but notofficially closed yet© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Sources: Various, Compiled by WNISR, 2019

In the case of TEPCO’s last remaining nuclear plant at Kashiwazaki Kariwa in Niigata
Prefecture, it is expected that a decision on the future and possible decommissioning of one ormore of the seven reactors will be made in 2019. On 1 January 2017, Mayor Masahiro Sakuraiof Kashiwazaki City announced that as a condition for allowing restart of Units 6 and 7,
TEPCO must propose a decommissioning plan by 2019 for at least one reactor from Units 1–5(with no upward limit on the number of these reactors to be permanently shuttered).182 Themayor suggested it is inevitable to scale down the plant: “Considering the Fukushima nuclear
accident, seven reactors are too many.”183 The mayor extended his position dramatically whenon 25 July 2017 he agreed to the restart of Kashiwazaki Kariwa Units 6 and 7 reactors buton the condition that TEPCO “presents a plan to decommission the remaining five in two
180 - Darrell Proctor, “TEPCO Exec: Daini Plant Will Be Decommissioned”, POWER, 14 June 2018,see http://www.powermag.com/tepco-exec-daini-plant-will-be-decommissioned/, accessed 25 April 2019.
181 - TEPCO, “Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power Station to be Decommissioned”, 31 July 2019, Press Release,see https://www7.tepco.co.jp/newsroom/press/archives/2019/hd_190731_01-e.html, accessed 2 August 2019.
182 - Niigata-Nippo, “Mayor Kashiwazaki asks TEPCO for decommissioning one of Units 1 to 5”, 6 January 2017 (in Japanese)see http://www.niigata-nippo.co.jp/news/national/20170601327254.html, accessed 25 May 2018.
183 - The Mainichi, “Mayor to link reactor decommissioning to restarting 2 others at same TEPCO plant”, 2 June 2017,see https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20170602/p2a/00m/0na/002000c, accessed 25 April 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 years.”184 The demand was made in the mayor’s first meeting with TEPCO’s new president,
Tomoaki Kobayakawa, where June 2019 was set as a date when TEPCO would provide a plan.
In response, TEPCO’s President Kobayakawa said: “We should exchange opinions further.”185
In July 2018, President Kobayakawa noted that he was “aware that this is a problem in whichsome kind of reply is needed.”186 And without clarifying, according to Nikkei, he stated that
“he understands that Sakurai is not asking to decommission every reactor or scrap them
immediately.”187 In March 2019, TEPCO reported that they were still aiming for a June 2019
date to submit a report on decommissioning but were struggling with the “complexity”.188 In
early June 2019, TEPCO informed Sakurai that they were aiming for a plan to be presented in“early July”.189 On 1 July 2019, however, the mayor cancelled his meeting with TEPCO following
a miscommunication by TEPCO during the night of 17 June 2019 when a 6.7 magnitude
earthquake occurred off the coast of Niigata.190 TEPCO staff faxed local government office,including Kashiwazaki, with incorrect information indicating that there were safety problems
with the electric supply to the spent fuel pools at all seven of the Kashiwazaki Kariwa’s reactors.
As of 1 July 2019, it remains unclear when TEPCO will present its plans to the mayor.
There has been no clear indication from TEPCO on the number of reactors that will be offered
up for decommissioning. Analysis of the reactors, including from TEPCO, suggests at least
two reactors and possibly up to four might be proposed. Leading candidates for closure are
Kashiwazaki‑2, ‑3 and ‑4 which have not operated since 2007 when they were shut down by the
Niigata Chuetsu-oki earthquake.
Other reactors that remain highly vulnerable to closure include the two Shika BWR units
owned by Hokuriku Electric. The utility and the Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA) are
in dispute over the status of three seismic fault lines at the site, with the NRA concluding
in 2015 and 2016 that these may be active under the reactor of Unit 1 and just below safetyrelated equipment of Unit 2, which would preclude operation.191 There are no immediate
prospects of the utility giving up restart plans for Unit 2, which is an Advanced Boiling Water
Reator (ABWR), and has been under NRA review since 2014. The reactor was only connectedto the grid in 2005, and during the past 14 years has only operated for just over five years.
Hokuriku officials have stated their intention to submit Shika-1 for NRA review,192 but there are
no prospects for restart.193
184 - Asahi Shimbun, “Mayor: TEPCO’s Niigata plant must close 5 reactors”, 26 July 2017 (in Japanese),see http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201707260037.html, accessed 25 April 2019.
185 - Ibidem.
186 - Jun Iiyama, Yuki Fukumoto, “Tepco seeks overseas partners in renewable energy pivot”, Nikkei Asian Review, 24 July 2018,see https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Companies/Tepco-seeks-overseas-partners-in-renewable-energy-pivot, accessed 25 April 2019.
187 - Ibidem.
188 - Nikkei, “Tokyo Electric Niigata representative, Amagasaki 1‑5 units ‘decommissioning plan, within the deadline’”,
20 March 2019 (in Japanese), see https://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXMZO42720200Q9A320C1L21000/?fbclid=IwAR25VptCy64t7Wk
UJe5-9Bq18Oe_YJ9vz2anY3vIACIh8-T-Q4vpZgskfL0.
189 - Denki Shimbun, “TEPCO Kashiwazaki Kariwa, whereabouts of decommissioning plan... Submission time is coming / Business will
be affected, affecting management”, 7 June 2019 (in Japanese) see https://www.denkishimbun.com/archives/41117, accessed 8 July 2019.
190 - NW, “Mayor cancels Kashiwazaki meeting after erroneous TEPCO report sent”, 4 July 2019.
191 - The Mainichi, “Fault under Shika nuclear reactor likely to be active: NRA expert panel”, 3 March 2016,see https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20160303/p2a/00m/0na/015000c, accessed 30 April 2019.
192 - NW, “Japan’s Hokuriku to seek Shika-1 review after Shika-2 restart approval”, 21 March 2019.
193 - Nikkei, “Recurring profit, average 35 billion yen”, 26 April 2019 (in Japanese),see https://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXMZO44216150V20C19A4LB0000/, accessed 30 April 2019.

| 87

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

The Japanese nuclear fleet’s mean age now stands at 28.4 years, with 12 units over 31 years(see Figure 29).

Restart Prospects
As stated, no reactors are planned to be restarted through the remainder of FY 2019. Thereafter,
planned reactor restarts in 2020 and beyond remain uncertain. All currently operating reactors
in Japan are Pressurized Water Reactors (PWRs)—the destroyed Fukushima Daiichi units
were BWRs. As of 1 July 2019, not counting two reactors “under construction”, 16 reactors
remain under NRA safety review (out of a total of 25 that have applied since July 2013);
24 reactors remain in Long-Term Outage (LTO). Not all will restart, with many questions anddisagreements over seismic issues, and many plants far back in the review and screening queue.
There are officially two reactors under construction (Shimane-3 and Ohma).
Reactors most advanced in the restart process, and therefore with a possible restart in the
coming 12 to 24 months, include Kansai Electric’s (KEPCO) PWR Takahama-1 and -2, andPWR Mihama-3, which have passed NRA review for their respective upgrading plans. These
three reactors, which are 45, 44 and 43 years old respectively, were granted lifetime operation
approval to 60 years by the NRA in 2016.194 Restart schedules of these three reactors haveall been revised. In delaying restart of Takahama-1 from September 2019, Kansai Electric
announced a revised date of June 2020, both for completion of engineering work and a restartdate.195 It is likely that this date will slip further. In the case of Takahama-2, restart has been
pushed back from April 2020 to February 2021. As for Mihama-3, restart has been postponed
from February to August 2020. Again, there is a high likelihood of further delay for restart ofMihama‑3. The uncertainties are such that in 2020 there could be three additional reactors
operating in Japan, or—possibly more likely—one or none.
The restart delays for Takahama-1 and -2, and Mihama-3 are due to longer planned timescales
for multiple engineering retrofits to safety systems that are being applied. These include
emergency water injection equipment, Primary Containment Vessel (PCV) overpressuredamage prevention and measures to reduce risks from hydrogen explosion.196 Assuming that all
three reactors will be operating by mid-2021, Kansai Electric would have in total seven reactors
in operation, with an installed capacity of 6.25 GW.
The most advanced in the NRA restart review process is the Tohoku Electric’s BWR
Onagawa‑2, which applied for NRA review in December 2013.197 However, the utility postponed
194 - Noriyuki Ishii, “NRA Approves Extensions of Operating Periods to 60 Years for Takahama-1 and -2, the First for Aging Reactors”,
JAIF, 22 June 2016, see https://www.jaif.or.jp/en/nra-approves-extensions-of-operating-periods-to-60-years-for-takahama-1-and-2the-first-for-aging-reactors/; and Noriyuki Ishii, “NRA Approves Extension of Operating Lifetime for Mihama-3 through 2036”, JAIF,
17 November 2019, see https://www.jaif.or.jp/en/nra-approves-extension-of-operating-lifetime-for-mihama-3-through-2036/, bothaccessed 26 April 2019.
195 - NW, “Kansai Electric’s reactor restart delay to increase company’s LNG procurement”, 21 February 2019; and NW, “One reactor
expected to restart in Japan in 2019”, 11 October 2018.
196 - Kansai Electric, “Construction plan for a particular serious accidents, such as dealing facility of Takahama Nuclear Power Plant
Units 1 and 2 Approval overview of the application (3rd)”, 15 March 2019 (in Japanese), see https://www.kepco.co.jp/corporate/pr/2019/
pdf/0315_1j_01.pdf; and Kansai Electric, “About reactor setting change permission application of Mihama power plant (setting of
measures such as specific serious accident of Mihama power plant No. 3)”, 20 April 2018 (in Japanese),see https://www.kepco.co.jp/corporate/pr/2018/pdf/0420_3j_01.pdf, both accessed April 2019.
197 - WNN, “Tohoku seeks Onagawa 2 restart”, 30 December 2013, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Tohoku-seeksOnagawa-2-restart, accessed 26 April 2019.

| 88

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

its restart schedule several times and could do so again. In 2015, Tokhoku Electric had statedthat it would complete safety related work on the reactor by April 2017.198 In January 2017,
the utility disclosed to the NRA that the reactor building had sustained 1,130 cracks in thewalls and “lost an estimated 70 percent of structural rigidity” in the 3/11 earthquake.199 The
disclosures led Tohoku to push back restart schedule from 2018 to 2019 and then beyond
2020. The disclosures to the NRA followed an architectural investigation which identified
that structural rigidity, the ability to withstand earthquakes and other stresses from outside
without being distorted, was concentrated in the upper third of the reactor building with thethird floor only retaining 30 percent of its integrity compared with July 1995 when the reactor
began operation. It also confirmed a 25 percent loss of structural integrity in the two aboveground floors and three basement levels.
Significantly, the disclosure contrasts starkly with the assessment and conclusions of ahigh‑profile International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) mission to the plant in 2012.200 The
IAEA mission included a “structures team” assigned to observe and collect information on
the performance of the structural elements of buildings, with different design criteria. They
reported that, as far as cracks in Unit 2 are concerned, they were “less than 0.3 mm, although
at some locations there were cracks of approximately 0.8 mm. These minor cracks do not affectthe overall integrity of the structure.” The IAEA concluded: “The lack of any serious damage
to all classes of seismically designed facilities attests to the robustness of these facilities under
severe seismic ground shaking”, and that “the structural elements of the NPS [Nuclear Power
Station] were remarkably undamaged given the magnitude and duration of ground motion
experienced during this great earthquake.”201
The Onagawa plant is located 125 km from the source of the 3/11 earthquake, the nuclear reactorsite closest to the hypocenter (Fukushima Daiichi was 180 km from the hypocenter). As such,the lack of apparent damage to the plant since 2011 has been hailed by the IAEA and others as
evidence of the robustness of nuclear power plants in general. The Onagawa-2 reactor was inits startup sequence and not critical on 11 March 2011, whereas Units 1 and 3 were in operation.
As of 1 July 2019, the utility had not applied for NRA review of Unit 3 which began operation in
May 2001. Tokoku Electric’s President stated in November 2018 that they were in preparation
for submitting a safety review application to the NRA for the reactor, without specifying adate.202 There are suspicions that damage sustained at Unit 3 is more significant than reported.
On 28 March 2019, the utility announced that total projected costs for retrofits at Onagawa-2
were ¥340 billion (US$3.1 billion).203

198 - JAIF, “Tohoku Electric Power Says Work on Safety Measures at Onagawa‑2 and Higashidori‑1 to End by April 2017”, 17 June 2015,see https://www.jaif.or.jp/en/tohoku-electric-power-says-work-on-safety-measures-at-onagawa-2-and-higashidor-1-to-end-by-april-2017/,
accessed 26 April 2019.
199 - Asahi Shimbun, “1,130 cracks, 70% rigidity lost at Onagawa reactor building”, 18 January 2017.
200 - IAEA, “Mission To Onagawa Nuclear Power Station To Examine The Performance Of Systems, Structures And Components
Following The Great East Japanese Earthquake And Tsunami”, Mission Report to the Government of Japan, 30 July–11 August 2012,
Onagawa and Tokyo (Japan), IAEA Department Of Nuclear Safety And Security, Department Of Nuclear Energy,
see https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/iaeamissiononagawa.pdf, accessed 26 April 2019.
201 - Ibidem.
202 - NW, “Tohoku Electric preparing to apply to NRA for Onagawa-3 safety review”, 1 November 2018.
203 - Kahoku Shimpo, “Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant No. 2—Safety Measures ¥ 340 Billion”, 29 March 2019 (in Japanese),see https://www.kahoku.co.jp/tohokunews/201903/20190329_11016.html, accessed 26 April 2019.

| 89

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

In polling conducted in 2018 in Miyagi Prefecture, 70 percent of the public are reported to
be opposed to the restart of the Onagawa plant.204 In March 2019, the Miyagi assembly voted
down legislation for a prefecture-wide referendum on whether Onagawa should restart.205 The
draft legislation followed the submission of a petition with 111,743 signatures from prefecturalresidents. Tohoku Electric is aiming to complete its NRA safety review for Unit 2 in July 2019
and thereafter seek local approval for restart.206
Tohoku Electric’s other reactor, Higashidori-1 in Aomori Prefecture, remains underinvestigation seven years after the NRA concluded in December 2012 that two seismic fault
lines are active.207 Tohoku initiated further seismic surveys in March 2019 carried out throughSeptember with the aim of convincing the NRA that the faults are not active.208 Under Japanese
regulations, a reactor is not permitted to operate or be constructed if an active fault exists at
a nuclear site. One of Japan’s leading seismologists, who resigned from the government panelthat drafted the revised Japan’s seismic guidelines, has warned that “a strong earthquake of up
to about 7.3 magnitude could directly hit an area where even perfect seismic research could notdiscover an active fault line”.209
The utility Chugoku Electric is moving forward with NRA approval for restart of its Shimane
unit 2 BWR. In May 2019, the NRA summarized the status of review for the reactor, withseismic “design basis ground motion and design basis tsunami design policy substantiallycomplete”.210 However, there remain substantial issues still under review, including overall
seismic and tsunami design policy, safety assessment for hydrogen countermeasures andcontainment vessel cooling, pressure overload and water injection. In March 2019 Chugoku was
not able to inform investors of a target date for restart.211 At the same time, on 10 August 2018
Chugoku submitted its application to the NRA for review of its Shimane-3 Advanced Boiling
Water Reactor (ABWR).212 Construction began on Shimane-3 on 12 October 2007. According
to the Japan Atomic Industrial Forum (JAIF), the reactor was 93.6 percent complete as of
30 April 2011, and following the Fukushima Daiichi accident, construction was suspended, andplans revised.213 There is no operational start date for Shimane-3, and barring successful legal
204 - Satoshi Tatara, “I Coop Miyagi”, CNIC, 2 August 2018, see http://www.cnic.jp/english/?p=4178, accessed 26 April 2019.
205 - Kahoku Shimpo, “＜女川再稼働＞宮城県議会、住民投票条例案否決 自民など反対多数”, 16 March 2019 (in Japanese),see https://www.kahoku.co.jp/tohokunews/201903/20190316_11009.html?fbclid=IwAR2giYZVWqDC-OLCkYdKJHd6c6MW6fYd_b_20
erJLPSJm2dJrk1U0nqxcV4, accessed 26 April 2019.
206 - Kahoku Shimpo, “＜女川再稼働＞住民投票条例案否決「県民無視」嘆く請求側”, 16 March 2019 (in Japanese),see https://www.kahoku.co.jp/tohokunews/201903/20190316_11015.html.
207 - NucNet, “Japan Regulator Says Faults Under Higashi Dori Plant Are Active”, 27 December 2012, see https://www.nucnet.org/allthe-news/2012/12/27/japan-regulator-says-faults-under-higashi-dori-plant-are-active/print, accessed 26 April 2019.
208 - Nikkei, “Tohoku Electric Power Co., Ltd. Higashidori nuclear power plant released additional investigation site”,
22 April 2019 (in Japanese), see https://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXMZO44047130S9A420C1L01000/, accessed 29 April 2019.
209 - Ishibashi Katsuhiko, “Why Worry? Japan’s Nuclear Plants at Grave Risk From Quake Damage”, The Asia-Pacific Journal, Vol.5,
Issue 8, 1 August 2007, see https://apjjf.org/-Ishibashi-Gaku/2495/article.pdf, accessed 26 April 2019.
210 - NRA, “Current circumstances regarding examinations for NPP adherence to new regulations”, 15 May 2019.
211 - Energia, “Annual Report 2018—Year Ended March 31, 2018”, Chugoku Electric, August 2018,see http://www.energia.co.jp/e/ir/report/pdf/ar18/ar18.pdf, accessed 8 July 2019.
212 - Chugoku Electric, “Shimane Nuclear Power Station Unit 3 Reactor Application Change Permit Application for Conformity
Assessment to New Regulatory Standard”, Press Release, 10 August 2019 (in Japanese),see http://www.energia.co.jp/atom_info/press/2018/11333.html.
213 - JAIF, “Chugoku Electric Applies for Shimane-3 Safety Examination: Second for a Reactor under Construction after Ohma NPP”,
16 August 2018, see https://www.jaif.or.jp/en/chugoku-electric-applies-for-shimane-3-safety-examination-second-for-a-reactor-underconstruction-after-ohma-npp/, accessed 8 July 2019.

| 90

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 challenges, it can be predicted that it will be several years before operation. It would be thefirst new reactor to begin operation since 3/11 and the first since Tomari-3 in March 2009.

The Case of TEPCO’s Kashiwazaki Kariwa
The status of TEPCO’s Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR) Kashiwazaki Kariwa‑6
and ‑7 reactors in Niigata Prefecture has not changed significantly in the passt year. When
TEPCO submitted its first post-3/11 business plan to the Japanese government in 2012, itpredicted that restart of reactors at Kashiwazaki Kariwa would begin in FY2013. This wasnever credible. On 27 December 2017, Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA) approved theinitial safety assessment for TEPCO’s Kashiwazaki Kariwa Units 6 and 7, 214 the first BWRs toreach this stage of NRA’s review process.215 On 13 December 2018, TEPCO submitted to the
NRA a schedule for completion of its engineering work program on Unit 7, by which it aims tocomplete safety retrofits by December 2020.216 In its third Special Business Plan in June 2017, it
projected income from the reactors with three possible restart dates of 2019, 2020 and 2021.217
As of July 2019, the earliest the reactors could restart would be 2021, but only if TEPCO wereto overcome significant obstacles.
The Kashiwazaki Kariwa site has a history of major seismic activity, with repeatedunderestimates and non-disclosures of the seismic risks by TEPCO and resultant coverups. At
the time of the licensing of the ABWRs Units 6 and 7 in 1991 TEPCO presented evidence to theregulator that the nearby fault lines were not active. This was then proven to be incorrect, withTEPCO’s own data showing that they were aware of active faults as early as 1980. None of thiswas made public though until after the 2007 Niigata Chuetsu‑oki quake.218
There are multiple seismic fault lines in the area of the Kashiwazaki Kariwa site, including
through the site.219 There are large-scale submarine active faults offshore with four main ones,
three of which run along either edge of the Sado Basin, a depression between Sado Islandand mainland Kashiwazaki.220 Seismologists have long warned about the threat from major
earthquakes leading to a severe nuclear accident at Kashiwazaki Kariwa.221 Independent
seismologists and citizens’ groups continue to oppose restart of the reactors, including

214 - TEPCO, “Receipt of Approval of Revision for Reactor Installation Permit for Kashiwazaki-Kariwa NPS Units 6/7 tocomply with the New Regulatory Regulations”, Press Release, 27 December 2017, see http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/
release/2017/1470967_10469.html, accessed 26 April 2019.
215 - Justin McCurry, “Fears of another Fukushima as Tepco plans to restart world’s biggest nuclear plant”, The Guardian,
28 December 2017, see https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/dec/28/fears-of-another-fukushima-as-tepco-plans-to-restart-worldsbiggest-nuclear-plant, accessed 30 April 2018.
216 - Platts, “Tepco to finish engineering work program at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa in 2020”, Nuclear News Flashes, 14 December 2018.
217 - TEPCO, “Outline of the ‘Revised Comprehensive Special Business Plan (The Third Plan)”, 11 May 2017,see https://www7.tepco.co.jp/wp-content/uploads/hd05-02-03-001-170511_1-e.pdf, accessed 27 April 2019.
218 - Katsuhiko Ishibashi, Mitsuhisa Watanabe, “We demand that the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant be closed”, CNIC,
March‑April 2008, see http://www.cnic.jp/english/newsletter/pdffiles/nit123.pdf, accessed 27 April 2019.
219 - Kashiwazaki Kariwa Nuclear Power Fault Study Group, “Kashiwazaki Kariwa Nuclear Power Station site and its surroundings—
Request for a rigorous scientific review on stratigraphy of Middle and Upper Pleistocene”, 22 May 2017 (in Japanese),see http://masatate.blog.fc2.com/blog-entry-55.html, accessed 27 April 2019.
220 - CNIC, “We demand that the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant be closed”, 2008, op. cit.
221 - Ishibashi Katsuhiko, “Why Worry? Japan’s Nuclear Plants at Grave Risk From Quake Damage”, The Asia-Pacific Journal,
1 August 2007, Vol.5, Issue 8, see http://apjjf.org/-Ishibashi-Katsuhiko/2495/article.html, accessed 27 April 2019.

| 91

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

based on evidence that TEPCO has relied on flawed seismic assessments;222 meanwhile, legal
challenges seeking permanent closure are ongoing.
The Niigata governor election of 10 June 2018 led to the appointment of Liberal Democratic
Party (LDP)-backed candidate Hideyo Hanazumi.223 This does not automatically mean any
early restart for TEPCOs Kashiwazaki-Kariwa reactors. The newly elected governor, consciousthat 65 percent of the Niigata population remain opposed to restart of any reactors at theplant, stated, “as long as the people of Niigata remain unconvinced, (the reactors) won’t berestarted.”224
Niigata has a long history of opposition to the nuclear power plant, but this was exacerbatedwhen in September 2002, following disclosures from a General Electric whistleblower,
TEPCO was forced to admit that the organization had deliberately falsified data for inclusion
in regulatory safety inspection reports of their reactors, a consequence of “systematic andinappropriate management of nuclear power inspections and repair work [over] a long time”.225
As a consequence, at the time, all 17 TEPCO reactors—the 7 at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa and the
10 at Fukushima—were shut down for extended periods, and TEPCO’s chairman, president,
and executive vice-president all resigned. The major seismic risks at the plant were exposedby the 2007 Niigata Chuetsu-oki earthquake, which once again led to the extended shutdownof all Kashiwazaki Kariwa reactors, while Units 2, 3 and 4 have not operated since then. In
February 2019, the NRA announced it was investigating TEPCO for ongoing safety violations,at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, as well as at Fukushima.226
In the aftermath of the 2002 falsification disclosures, the then governor of Niigata establisheda Technical Committee of 15 experts to review nuclear safety in the prefecture. This committee
is currently reviewing the Fukushima Daiichi accidents, including causes as well as ongoingassessments of the safety of the Kashiwazaki Kariwa plant. This includes meetings with NRA,
where the regulator has been regularly challenged on its safety approval of the reactors.227
A second committee, established in August 2017 by then Governor Ryuichi Yoneyama, isreviewing the health impacts of the Fukushima Daiichi accident and a third committee, alsoestablished under Yoneyama, is reviewing emergency planning in Niigata in the event of asevere accident at the Kashiwazaki Kariwa plant.228 The work of the Committees was linked
to the then Governor’s decision on the restart of Units 6 and 7 and are expected to conclude
222 - Niigata Nippo, “At Kashiwazaki Nuclear Power Station, ‘Incomplete fault investigation’ residents group proposed to TEPCO”,
26 January 2019 (in Japanese), see https://www.niigata-nippo.co.jp/news/national/20190126447009.html, accessed 27 April 2019;and Tateishi Masaaki, “Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant, doubt on TEPCO interpretation of the Terao fault outcrop”,
30 January 2019 (in Japanese), see http://masatate.blog.fc2.com/blog-entry-64.html, accessed 27 April 2019.
223 - Asahi Shimbun, “LDP-backed candidate wins governor’s race in Niigata”, 11 June 2019,see http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201806110049.html, accessed 27 April 2019.
224 - Eric Johnston, “If Niigata gubernatorial race was a litmus test, Abe and Nikai passed”, The Japan Times, 11 June 2018,see https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2018/06/11/national/politics-diplomacy/niigata-gubernatorial-race-litmus-test-abe-nikaipassed/#.WzDaTxIzbOQ, accessed 27 April 2019.
225 - TEPCO, “Report on the Investigation into Inspection and Maintenance Problems at TEPCO’s Nuclear Power Plants, pointed
out by GE”, Press Release, 17 September 2002, see http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/02091701-e.html, accessed
27 April 2019.
226 - Yusuke Ogawa, “TEPCO sat by idly on reports of fires, glitches at nuclear plants”, The Asahi Shimbun, 14 February 2019,see http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201902140054.html, accessed 27 April 2019.
227 - Tadao Yabe, “Preventing the Restart of Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Station is Possible!”, Local Coalition Opposed to the
Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Station, CNIC, 2 August 2018, see http://www.cnic.jp/english/?p=4165, accessed 27 April 2019.
228 - Kentaro Hamada, Osamu Tsukimori, “Niigata governor’s plans may upend TEPCO’s nuclear restarts, restructuring”, Reuters,
9 June 2017, see https://www.reuters.com/article/us-japan-nuclear-tepco-idUSKBN1900OR, accessed 27 April 2019.

| 92

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

their investigations in mid-2020. The committees’ work is ongoing, and the new Governor has
stated since his election that he will await the conclusion of their investigations prior to any
decision.229

The Case of JAPC’s Tokai-2 and the “Ibaraki Method”
On 22 February 2019, Japan Atomic Power Company (JAPC) announced its intention to proceedwith the restart of its 1100‑MW BWR Tokai-2 reactor.230 The target date is January 2023. This
followed a 7 November 2018 unanimous decision by Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA)commissioners to approve an additional 20 years of operation.231 On 26 September 2018, the
NRA had approved the safety review of the reactor.232 It was the first BWR to pass all safety
stages of the NRA review process and receive a 20‑year lifetime extension. The reactor, which
was connected to the grid in March 1978, has not operated since 3/11 when it underwent an
emergency shutdown resulting from being affected by the magnitude 9.0 earthquake andtsunami. It is located in Ibaraki Prefecture, 70 km from Tokyo and is the closest commercial
nuclear reactor to the capital. JAPC was formed in 1957 as the only power company based solely
on nuclear reactor operation. The company is jointly owned by Japan’s nuclear energy utilities
with TEPCO, Kansai Electric, Chubu and Hokuriku being its largest shareholders. The Tokai-2
reactor is the only reactor JAPC is advancing towards restart, given the active fault line at its
other site, Tsuruga in Fukui.
There remain major challenges to the eventual restart of Tokai-2. These include the securingof financing for retrofits. JAPC originally estimated costs of ¥174 billion (US$1.54 billion) in
retrofits and that the reactor would pass NRA’s pre-operational inspections by March 2021.233
By March 2019, this was revised to ¥300 billion (US$2.73 billion).234
Yet the company is in dire financial straits due to loss of revenue from electricity sales following
reactor shutdowns, investment in plans for the constructions Tsuruga-3 and -4 (which wereabandoned) and decommissioning costs related to Tsuruga-1 and Tokai-1.235 The NRA in
November 2017, in approving the basic safety plan for Tokai-2, requested an “exceptional
disclosure”, whereby JAPCO had to specify the guarantor of the loan it would be taking out inorder to make the necessary safety upgrades. As shareholders of JAPC, TEPCO has agreed inprinciple to offer ¥190 billion (US$1.75 billion) in up-front bank loans, with Tohoku Electric,
Chubu Electric Power Co., Kansai Electric Power Co. and Hokuriku Electric Power Co.
229 - The Asahi Shimbun, “LDP-backed candidate wins governor’s race in Niigata”, 11 June 2018,see http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201806110049.html, accessed 27 April 2019.
230 - JAPC, “Revision of the Tokai Power Station and Tokai No. 2 Power Plant nuclear operator emergency plan”, 22 February 2019,see http://www.japc.co.jp/news/press/2018/pdf/310222_1.pdf, accessed 28 April 2019.
231 - JAIF, “NRA Allows Tokai-2 to Be Operated for Sixty Years, a First for a BWR”, 16 November 2018,see https://www.jaif.or.jp/en/nra-allows-tokai-2-to-be-operated-for-sixty-years-a-first-for-a-bwr/, accessed 28 April 2019.
232 - The Asahi Shimbun, “NRA approves Tokai nuclear plant, but restart hangs in balance”, 27 September 2019,see http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201809270039.html, accessed 28 April 2019.
233 - Platts, “NRA approves Tokai-2 life extension”, 7 November 2018.
234 - The Asahi Shimbun, “TEPCO takes risk over soaring costs at Tokai nuclear plant”, 15 March 2019,see http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201903150001.html, accessed 28 April 2019.
235 - Mitsunobu Ohishi, “Tokai II Nuclear Power Plant’s 20 year extension: A story of economic inefficiency and passing the buck”,
Co‑Representative of the class action lawsuit demanding an injunction on Tokai II, CNIC, 2 February 2018,see http://www.cnic.jp/english/?p=4044, accessed 28 April 2019.

| 93

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

also offering financial support. As of February 2019, the financing agreement had not been
implemented and JAPC had insufficient funds to begin engineering retrofits.236
Local opposition in Ibaraki Prefecture to operations of Tokai-2 has grown since 3/11. The
emergency shutdown due to loss of offsite power during the quake, the loss of all but one
emergency generator, and a near miss in terms of tsunami flooding, threatening a meltdown ofa reactor with over 960,000 people within a 30 km radius, have all contributed to significant
political opposition to any restart proposal. Six municipalities near the Tokai-2 plant haveargued that JAPC should gain their consent before restart. On 29 March 2018, after six years ofnegotiations, a unique safety agreement was reached between JAPC and the six municipalities
which lie within 30 km of the plant. According to documents obtained by The Asahi Shimbun,
the agreement stipulates that “when JAPC seeks to restart the Tokai No. 2 nuclear plant or
extend its operation, it will effectively obtain prior approval from Tokai village and fivesurrounding municipalities.”237
Despite assurances from JAPC to the municipalities that the company was granting
consent rights to them on restart issued prior to NRA approval, once approval was grantedin autumn 2018, JAPC started to backtrack. JAPC Vice President Nobutaka Wachi stated:“The word ‘veto power’ can’t be found anywhere in the new agreement.”238 The company’s
understanding of the agreement, in contrast to what the municipalities believe, is that it “isa plan to effectively obtain prior consent from the six municipalities (by continuing to talkthoroughly with them until they grant their consent).”239 Relations between JAPC and themunicipalities have for obvious reasons deteriorated, and it remains unclear how or whether
it will be resolved in the coming few years. A critical issue remains the ability of authorities
to establish credible evacuation plans for nearly one million people within 30 km, the highest
population density for any nuclear plant in Japan. Reacting to the announcement of JAPC on
restart plans, Mayor Takahashi of Mito city (one of the six municipalities) warned that restartis impossible until realistic evacuation plans are made and the citizens’ understanding of themis gained.240 Citizen-led legal challenges to restart are ongoing.
A more immediate effect of the Ibaraki agreement is that the municipalities have signaled
they expect JAPC to provide detailed plans for the engineering retrofits prior to the start ofany work, with any delay of submission to municipalities likely to delay engineering work,
potentially postponing restart, according to an official from Naka city, one of the municipalities
within the 30 km area.241
The so-called “Ibaraki method”, so far unique to Ibaraki, has been exported to othercommunities around Japan making the case that utilities should have the same conditionsin their safety agreement with municipalities. For obvious reasons, power companies are notrushing to adopt the Ibaraki method.
236 - NW, “JAPC will need to rebuild trust with local communities, secure cash for Tokai-2 restart”, 7 March 2019.
237 - Yosuke Hiruma, “JAPC denies granting local prior consent for reactor restart”, The Asahi Shimbun, 8 January 2019,see http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201901080045.html, accessed 28 April 2019.
238 - Ibidem.
239 - Ibidem.
240 - Japan Times, “Heed opinions of all municipalities near reactors”, Editorials, 9 November 2018, see https://www.japantimes.co.jp/
opinion/2018/11/09/editorials/heed-opinions-municipalities-near-reactors/#.XOF9JJNKjOQ, accessed 28 April 2019.
241 - NW, “Disputes with localities may delay Tokai-2 operation”, 7 February 2019.

| 94

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Other reactors within the NRA review process continue to have multiple challenges. For
example, Hokkaido Electric Power Company, the owner of the PWR Tomari nuclear plant,
continues to be in dispute with the NRA over the status of a seismic fault line at the site.
The utility claims that the fault has not been active for 400,000 years, whereas the NRA
takes the position that there is no evidence that the fault was “not active within the past
120,000 years”, 242 the latter is the time period which, if confirmed, would preclude restart of
the reactor. The utility has committed to submitting more evidence of their case by autumn
of 2019. While all three reactors at Tomari have been under NRA review, Unit 3 is the mostadvanced, but has suffered multiple delays in restart plans.
The risks from major seismic events was demonstrated when on 6 September 2018 amagnitude 6.7 earthquake struck the island of Hokkaido.243 Thermal power plants shut down
across the island, and the Tomari nuclear plant, including spent fuel pools, were reliant uponon‑site emergency generators for a period of 10 hours.

Financing Meltdowns
In April 2019, two analysts, Eri Kanamori and Tomas Kåberger, published an assessment of
the complex system of financing of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster related to theprospects for Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), and wider nuclear utilities in Japan.244
They explain that immediate payments have been made possible by direct transfers fromthe Japanese government, and these improvised solutions have for seven years both kept the
government’s borrowing capacity intact and allowed TEPCO to avoid going bankrupt. But as
the analysts explain, these payments “are not acknowledged as government spending. Instead,a complicated system of envisioned re-payments have been created.”245 As with other analysis,
they predict that TEPCO’s Special Business Plan will be impossible to fulfill, and that further
improvised and complicated solutions may follow. Their conclusion is that the system in placein Japan shows a lack of readiness and an absence of any plan on how to manage the economic
consequences of an accident of the magnitude of 3/11, and that the repayment schemes in Japanare not compatible with a future efficient and competitive electricity market.

Multiple Reactor Shutdowns from Spring 2020?
As mentioned above, a decision by the NRA over completion of emergency engineering
measures at nuclear plants on 24 April 2019 has raised the prospect of multiple reactor
shutdowns starting in March 2020.246 Under post‑Fukushima regulatory guidelines, nuclear
plant operators are required to have completed work programs that include building a bunkered242 - NW, “NRA’s restart review of Onagawa-2 ‘most progressed’ official says”, 15 May 2019.
243 - The Japan Times, “Powerful M6.7 earthquake rocks Hokkaido, causing massive landslides; nine dead and 31 reported missing”,
6 September 2018, see https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2018/09/06/national/powerful-m6-7-earthquake-hits-hokkaido-no-tsunamialert-issued/#.XOGwiZNKjOQ, accessed 29 April 2019.
244 - Eri Kanamori, Tomas Kåberger, “Distributing the Costs of Nuclear Core Melts—Japan’s Experience after 7 Years”, 27 April 2019,
published in Reinhard Haas, Lutz Mez, et al., “The Technological and Economic Future of Nuclear Power”,
see https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-25987-7_17, accessed 20 July 2019.
245 - Ibidem
246 - The Mainichi Shimbun, “Japan to halt nuclear plants if anti-terror steps not taken in time”, 24 April 2019,see https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20190424/p2g/00m/0dm/067000c, accessed 29 April 2019.

| 95

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

second control center comprising an emergency control room, an electricity generator, a water
storage tank and multiple pumps to feed cooling water to the containment vessels. Thesefacilities are required to protect against damage in the event of deliberate or accidental aircraft
impact, malicious attack, or fire or explosions in the reactor containment. Originally set tobe implemented by 2018 (five years after the adoption of the revised Guidelines), in 2015 the
NRA extended the compliance period to within five years of approval of reactor Construction
Plans. By voting unanimously for maintaining the deadline, and by rejecting the pleading ofutilities, 247 the NRA commissioners have apparently set the clock towards multiple reactor
shutdowns beginning in spring 2020.
According to Kyushu Electric, Kansai Electric Power and Shikoku Electric Power, ten of theirreactors will miss their deadlines. First to close, if the NRA decision remains in place, would
be Sendai-1 on 18 March 2020, followed by Sendai-2 on 22 May 2020; Takahama-3 and -4 mustmeet the deadline of 4 August and 9 October 2020 respectively or shut down. These would
be followed by Ikata-3 on 23 March 2021 and Mihama-3 on 26 October 2021; the latter, which
remains in Long-Term Outage (LTO), is not scheduled to restart operations until August 2020.
Genkai‑3 and -4 have until 2022 to complete work; likewise for Takahama‑1 and ‑2, both ofwhich remain in LTO and not due to restart until 2020 and 2021 respectively. Described asa near total shutdown of Japan’s reactor fleet, the NRA decision contributed to a 19‑percent
plunge of the three utilities’ share value as of April 2019.248 All utilities have reported that they
are behind schedule in the construction of their “contingency” facilities.249 It remains to be
seen if the NRA commissioners relent under pressure from the utilities.
All of these factors contribute to the wholly uncertain prospects for nuclear power in Japanover the next few years.

247 - JAIF, “Electric Power Companies Ask NRA for Understanding on Extending Grace Period for Building Anti-Terrorism Facilities
at NPPs”, 24 April 2019, see https://www.jaif.or.jp/en/electric-utilities-ask-nra-for-understanding-on-extending-grace-period-forbuilding-anti-terrorism-facilities-at-npps/, accessed 29 April 2019.
248 - Robin Harding, “Japan’s nuclear reactors face new near-total shutdown”, Financial Times, 25 April 2019, see https://www.ft.com/
content/1b2c395e-6724-11e9-9adc-98bf1d35a056, accessed 29 April 2019.
249 - Yomiuri Shimbun, “NRA, power utilities should promote in-depth dialogue for nuclear safety”, The Japan News, The Yomiuri
Shimbun, 8 May 2019, see http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0005725420.

| 96

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

SOUTH KOREA
FOCUS
On the Korean Peninsula, South Korea (Republic of Korea) operates 23 reactors, with one newreactor startup and one permanent closure decision over the past year, and one reactor entering
Long-Term Outage or LTO status. Shin‑Kori‑4 was connected to the grid on 22 April 2019,
five years later than planned. In June 2018, the commercial operation of Wolsong-1 was“terminated”, long before a 2022 deadline.250 As the reactor had not generated power since
May 2017, WNISR considers it closed as of that date.
South Korea’s nuclear fleet, owned by Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Company (KHNP), is
located at the Hanbit, Hanul, Kori and Wolsong sites. Nuclear power provided 127 TWh in
2018, a drop of 10 percent compared to 2017, and 19 percent below the maximum production
in 2015. Nuclear power supplied 23.7 percent of the nation’s electricity in 2018, less than half ofthe maximum of 53.3 percent in 1987. The capacity factor for KHNP reactors was 63.8 percent;the decline in nuclear generation was mainly due to reduced availability as a result of extended
reactor outages.
In April 2018, 11 reactors in Korea were shut down for maintenance and inspection;251
and on 1 July 2018, eight reactors remained shut down, 252 while six remained offline on
18 December 2018.253 Hanbit-4 has been shut down in May 2017, and as it had not restarted by
mid-2019, it meets the LTO criteria. One of the issues that has led to delays in restarts of reactors
has been the discovery of reactor Containment Liner Plate (CLP) corrosion (see hereunder).254
As a consequence, KHNP reactor maintenance outages increased 75 percent, from 1,373 days in2016 to 2,397 days in 2017.255
In December 2017, the government approved the 8th Basic Plan for long-term Electricity supply
and demand (BPE), which marks a major shift in overall energy policy, while confirming thegradual nuclear phase-out road map announced in October 2017.256 In the period to 2030, four
new reactors will begin operation, while ten reactors would be taken offline as eight reach their
40‑year lifetime and two their 30‑year limit (different reactor technologies). Nuclear power
capacity would peak in 2022, before declining towards phase-out. Thus, under current policy,
250 - KHNP, “Nuclear Power Operation - Plant Status”, 31 December 2018,see http://cms.khnp.co.kr/eng/content/529/main.do?mnCd=EN03020101, accessed 27 March 2019.
251 - Operating reactors as of 11 June 2018: Kori‑2, Hanbit‑3 & ‑4, Wolsong‑1, Shin Wolsong‑1, Hanul‑4, Hanul‑6, Shin‑Kori‑3.
Joori Roh, Sunil Nair, “Status of South Korea’s nuclear reactors”, Reuters, 17 April 2018,see https://af.reuters.com/article/commoditiesNews/idAFL3N1RU20O, accessed 7 June 2019.
252 - KHNP, “Real Time Operating Status”, 1 July 2018 (in Korean), see http://www.khnp.co.kr/main.do, accessed 11 July 2018.
253 - Jane Chun, “S.Korea’s 2018 LNG imports to hit record high over 42 mln T”, Reuters, 19 December 2018, see https://www.reuters.
com/article/southkorea-lng/s-koreas-2018-lng-imports-to-hit-record-high-over-42-mln-t-idUSL3N1YN31D, accessed 5 June 2019.
254 - The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission (NSSC) required inspection of corrosion at 19 nuclear units with containment liner
plate (CLP), after the corrosion of CLP of Hanbit unit #2 was found in June 2016. As of February 2018, 17 out of 19 units had completed
inspection, with 9 reactors found with corrosion. four reactors have completed repair and five units are under maintenance. Inspectionof the remaining two reactors was scheduled to be completed by April 2018. See NSSC multiple reports on inspections, the most recent
being Hanul-5 in May 2018, see NSSC, “Approval of re‑operation after preventive maintenance”, 16 May 2018 (in Korean),see http://www.nssc.go.kr/nssc/notice/report.jsp?mode=view&article_no=44264&pager.offset=0&board_no=2, accessed 7 June 2019.
255 - Market Screener, “Korea Electric Power : KEPCO recorded 5 trillion won of operating profit”, 4-Traders, 26 February 2018,see https://www.marketscreener.com/KOREA-ELECTRIC-POWER-CORP-6494969/news/Korea-Electric-Power-KEPCO- recorded-5trillion-won-of-operating-profit--26055391/, accessed 7 June 2019.
256 - Se Young Jang, “South Korea’s Nuclear Energy Debate”, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 26 October 2017,see http://carnegieendowment.org/2017/10/26/south-korea-s-nuclear-energy-debate-pub-73561, accessed 7 June 2019.

| 97

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 98

nuclear power will remain a significant source of electricity generation in South Korea wellinto mid-century.
The new BPE stipulates close to 12 percent nuclear in the power generating capacity as of2030, then producing almost 24 percent of the country’s electricity. The new BPE projects anincrease of installed renewables capacity (excluding large hydro and mainly solar photovoltaics
and wind) from 11.3 GW in 2017 to 58.5 GW in 2030, leading to a 20 percent market shareof national generation capacity—a major policy shift. Over more than three decades theenergy policy of successive South Korean governments had been premised on the continued
expansion of nuclear power, including for example a target of 41 percent by 2030 (2008 first
National Energy Basic Plan for 2008–2030) and Korea Electric Power Corporation’s (KEPCO)
2011 proposed 43 GW of nuclear capacity for 2035.
Table 6 | Scheduled Closure Dates for Nuclear Power Reactors in Korea 2023–2029
Type

MW

Grid
connection

Expected
ClosureKori-2

PWR

640

1983

2023

Kori-3

PWR

1 011

1985

2024

Hanbit-1

PWR

995

1986

2025

Kori-4

PWR

1 012

1985

2025

Hanbit-2

PWR

988

1986

2026

Wolsong-2

PHWR

611

1997

2026

Hanul-1

PWR

966

1988

2027

Wolsong-3

PHWR

641

1998

2027

Hanul-2

PWR

967

1989

2028

Wolsong-4

PHWR

622

1999

2029

Hanbit-3

PWR

986

1994

Hanbit-5

PWR

992

2001

Hanbit-6

PWR

993

2002

Hanul-3

PWR

997

1998

Hanul-4

PWR

999

1998

Hanul-5

PWR

998

2003

Hanul-6

PWR

997

2005

Shin-Kori-1

PWR

996

2010

Shin-Kori-2

PWR

996

2012

Shin-Kori-3

PWR

1 416

2016

Shin-Kori-4

PWR

1 340

2019

Shin-Wolsong-1

PWR

997

2012

Shin-Wolsong-2

PWR

993

2015

Reactor

Sources: MOTIE, 2017

Following the closure of Wolsong-1, the seven reactors that are now planned to be closed justprior to reaching their 40-year operating lifetime total 6.6 GW of capacity and are Kori-2 in
2023, Kori-3 in 2024, Kori-4 and Hanbit-1 in 2025, and Hanbit-2 in 2026, Hanul-1 in 2027 andWo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Hanul-2 in 2028. Three reactors are scheduled to be closed as they reach their 30-year lifetime:
Wolsong‑2 in 2026, Wolsong-3 in 2027 and Wolsong-4 in 2029 (see Table 6).257
The government had indicated that it would compensate KHNP for the closure of Wolsong‑1,
citing the company’s own data for a total of 244.1 billion won (US$230 million), whereas
opposition lawmakers had cited figures as high as 995 billion won (US$920 million). However,
KHNP’s own figures show that compensation may not be justified given the reactor’s poor
performance. When announcing its closure in June 2018, KHNP stated that its decision
was based on the “uncertain economic viability” of its continued operation and recent low
operating performance. The reactor’s generating unit costs stood at 120 won (US$0.109)
per kWh as of late 2017 or double the current market price of 60 won (US$0.054) per kWh.
President Chung Jae‑Hoon of KHNP reported that “After the 2016 earthquakes in Gyeongju,
Wolsong 1’s operation rate dropped below 50 percent, and it remains suspended now [becauseof maintenance].(…) Wolsong 1 is already running in the red.”258
The troubled Wolsong-1 was already shut down in 2012 as its operating license expired. In
2015, the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission (NSSC), against strong local opposition,
approved a ten‑year extension allowing it to restart and operate until 2022.259 It generated
power for only half of the granted lifetime extension before it was taken off the grid in 2017 andhas remained closed ever since.

Reactor Startup
Shin-Kori-4, located at Gori in the southeast of the Republic of Korea, was connected to the gridon 22 April 2019.260 The KHNP‑owned reactor is the second APR-1400 (Advanced Pressurized
Reactor) to begin operation and the nation’s 26th commercial nuclear reactor. As noted,
startup occurred five years later than the initial startup planned for 2014. The Nuclear Safety
and Security Commission (NSSC) had granted an operational permit on 1 February 2019.261
Factors that contributed to the delays included the 5.8 magnitude Gyeongju earthquake in
September 2016262—the most powerful quake to have hit the Korean peninsula since recording
began in 1978— and the 5.4 magnitude Pohang quake in November 2017263 , both of which
occurred in the southeast of the peninsula, where the majority of the nation’s reactors arelocated, including the Shin‑Kori site. Other causes for delay included a far-reaching scandal
over falsifications of quality certificates for reactor components, as reported in WNISR2017,257 - Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, “The 8th Basic Plan for Long-term Electricity Supply and Demand (2017-2031)”, 2017,see https://www.kpx.or.kr/www/downloadBbsFile.do?atchmnflNo=30051, accessed 31 July 2019.
258 - Choi Ha-yan, “Wolsong 1 reactor to be undergo early closure”, Hankyoreh, 17 June 2018,see http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/849404.html, accessed 7 June 2019.
259 - NSSC, “The Commissioners Decided to Approve Continued Operation of Wolsong Unit 1 in the 35th Meeting”, Press Release,
27 February 2015, see http://www.nssc.go.kr/nssc/english/release/list.jsp?mode=view&article_no=17977&pager.offset=10&board_no=501,
accessed 7 June 2019.
260 - KHNP, “Commemorative ceremony for the first system connection of Shin‑Kori No. 4”, 25 April 2019 (in Korean),see http://www.khnp.co.kr/board/BRD_000187/boardView.do?pageIndex=1&boardSeq=70129&mnCd=FN070107, accessed 7 June 2019.
261 - NSSC, “The NSSC Decided to Issue Operation Permit of Shinkori Unit 4”, Press Release, 1 February 2019,see http://www.nssc.go.kr/nssc/english/release/list.jsp?mode=view&article_no=45147&pager.offset=30&board_no=501, accessed 5 June 2019.
262 - Jane Chung, “South Korea’s biggest earthquake triggers nuclear safety concerns”, Reuters, 13 September 2016,see https://www.reuters.com/article/us-southkorea-nuclear-quake-idUSKCN11J0R2, accessed 7 June 2019.
263 - Hankyoreh, “Latest earthquake shows importance of phasing out nuclear power on Korean Peninsula”, 16 November 2017,see http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_editorial/819393.html, accessed 7 June 2019.

| 99

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 details of which continued to emerge in 2019;264 and policy changes after the election of
President Moon Jae‑In in 2017.265
In May 2015, the NSSC confirmed that there had been quality-control falsification issues within
the Korean nuclear industry that lasted for a decade. Shin-Kori-3 as well as Unit 4 were foundto have had falsified quality-control documents requiring the replacement of plant cabling(see WNISR17 and WNISR18). The operational license for Shin-Kori-3 was only granted by the
NSSC on 29 October 2015 and the reactor was connected to the grid on 15 January 2016.266
Corruption and safety violations in the Korean nuclear program have continued to emerge inrecent years, with one nuclear industry whistleblower in April 2019 stating that, “On principle,
I don’t trust anything that KHNP built.”267
The NSSC in April 2019 passed a bill that ordered the KHNP to construct on-site emergency
response facilities for all nuclear reactors.268 The NSSC decision was part of the post‑3/11
measures to be applied in Korea. The additional base is to be secured inside the nuclear power
plant site, other than the existing emergency response facility, which is currently off site, sothat emergency personnel perform accident response and post-accident management. It is
unknown at this stage whether or not this measure will have the same implications as therecent decision by Japan’s Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA) that set a five-year timeframe
for completion of such facilities. Utilities in Japan are set to miss the deadline and on current
trajectory will be forced to close reactors starting in March 2020.

New Reactor Construction
Four additional APR-1400 reactors remain under construction. At Shin-Kori work resumed
on Unit 5 in October 2017 and construction officially started on 6 September 2018 on Unit 6with startup scheduled for June 2024. As this would be the last nuclear plant to start up
with a nominal operational lifetime of 60 years, nuclear power capacity would peak in 2022,
before declining towards an “organic” phase-out expected to occur in the middle of 2080s.
Construction of twin APR-1400 units, Shin-Hanul-1 and Shin-Hanul-2, continues, after startingin July 2012 and June 2013, while missing their original completion dates of 2017 and 2018.269
The latest dates provided by KHNP are November 2019 and September 2020 for commercial
operation; but according to those estimates, fuel loading for Shin-Hanul-1 should have takenplace in June 2019, which it did not.270
264 - Max S. Kim, “How greed and corruption blew up South Korea’s nuclear industry”, MIT Technology Review, 22 April 2019,see https://www.technologyreview.com/s/613325/how-greed-and-corruption-blew-up-south-koreas-nuclear-industry, accessed
7 June 2019.
265 - KHNP, “Commemorative ceremony for the first system connection of Shin‑Kori No. 4”, 25 April 2019 (in Korean),see http://www.khnp.co.kr/board/BRD_000187/boardView.do?pageIndex=1&boardSeq=70129&mnCd=FN070107, accessed 2 June 2019.
266 - WNISR, “Shin Kori-3 Connected to the South Korean Grid”, 20 January 2016,see https://www.worldnuclearreport.org/Shin-Kori-3-Connected-to-the-South-Korean-Grid.html, accessed 7 June 2019.
267 - Max S. Kim, “How greed and corruption blew up South Korea’s nuclear industry”, MIT Technology Review, 22 April 2019, op. cit.
268 - NSSC, “The 100th Meeting of the Commission Was Held”, Press Release, 12 April 2019,see http://www.nssc.go.kr/nssc/english/release/list.jsp?mode=view&article_no=45343&pager.offset=10&board_no=501, accessed 5 June 2019.
269 - WNISR, “New Reactor Under Construction in South Korea”, 1 July 2013,see https://www.worldnuclearreport.org/New-Reactor-Under-Construction-in.html, accessed 7 June 2019.
270 - KHNP, “Nuclear Power Construction - Shin-Hanul #1,2”, 31 January 2019,see http://cms.khnp.co.kr/eng/content/547/main.do?mnCd=EN03020303, accessed 17 June 2019.

| 100

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

The government 2017 Basic Plan for long-term Electricity supply and demand (BPE) energy
plan confirmed cancellation of six new reactor projects (all APR‑1400 design): Shin-Hanul-3
and ‑4, Cheonji-1 and -2 (in Yeongdeok) and either Cheonji-3 and -4 or Daejin-1 and -2 (inSamcheok). The cancellation of these projects comes after successive governments had failed
to secure new sites for plants, due to local opposition, including at Samcheok and Yeongdeok.271

Energy Policy Under Attack
The past year has seen an escalation of the campaign against President Moon’s energy policy by
the nuclear industry and its supporters in the former government Liberty Korea Party (LKP)
as well as the largely conservative print media.272 As a consequence, President Moon’s energy
policy has become more contested. One reason for this is the relentless media coverage thathas falsely conflated in the public’s mind Moon’s energy policy as being responsible for thesevere air pollution experienced in Seoul during the past year. In March 2019 the National
Assembly passed a bill on the designation of fine dust as a social disaster as Seoul and otherparts of Korea face serious particle pollution.273 The reason for air pollution levels reachingsuch proportions is due in large part to micro-dust and yellow dust blown in from China.274 The
contribution from Korea’s coal-fired plants is also a major factor. However, it was the previous
conservative government that expanded coal plant use by 50 percent in the ten years prior to2017.275
In January 2019, the LKP and the nuclear industry collected more than 300,000 signatures tooppose the long-term nuclear phase-out policies, calling for a restart of construction of the two
Shin‑Hanul nuclear power plants in Uljin County, North Gyeongsang Province.276 The LKP and
Bareun Party aim to ultimately stop the long-term nuclear phase-out. However, the Ministryof Trade, Industry and Energy restated in February 2019 that “There is no change in thegovernment policy to reduce the country’s heavy reliance on nuclear in power generation... The
2017 state [organized citizens’] panel recommended to scale back nuclear power generation, so
the government will not revive Shin Hanul-3 and -4.”277
Despite the push back from industry and media, the government restated its commitment to
its energy transition in April and June 2019. Expansion of its renewable energy target to 30–
35 percent by 2040 was confirmed by the government on 19 April 2019.278 Confirming its energy
transition, including electricity demand reduction by 18 percent by 2040, Joo Young‑joon,
271 - NW, “South Korea government unveils roadmap for reducing nuclear power role”, 21 December 2017.
272 - The Dong-A Ilbo, “Govt. should establish reasonable energy policy”, 5 June 2019,see http://www.donga.com/en/article/all/20190605/1751460/1/Govt-should-establish-reasonable-energy-policy, accessed 7 June 2019.
273 - Yonhap, “Parliament passes bill on designating fine dust as social disaster”, 19 March 2019,see https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20190312010651315, accessed 7 June 2019.
274 - Wooyoung Lee, “South Korea smothered in Chinese air pollution”, UPI, 27 November 2018, see https://www.upi.com/Top_News/
World-News/2018/11/27/South-Korea-smothered-in-Chinese-air-pollution/3891543308613/, accessed 7 June 2019.
275 - Darrell Proctor, «Coal Generation Reaches New High in South Korea”, PowerMag, 4 January 2018,see https://www.powermag.com/coal-generation-reaches-new-high-in-south-korea, accessed 7 June 2019.
276 - Korea Herald, “[Going Renewable (1)] Korea steps in right direction for renewable energy, but challenges await”, 7 February 2019,see http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20190207000497, accessed 7 June 2019.
277 - NW, “South Korean government faces calls for easing of nuclear phase-out plan”, 28 February 2019.
278 - Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, “Revised South Korea energy plan boosts renewables, cuts coal”, Reuters,
19 April 2019, see http://ieefa.org/revised-south-korea-energy-plan-boosts-renewables-cuts-coal, accessed 7 June 2019.

| 101

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Deputy Minister for Energy and Resources stated that, “South Korea will build a highly efficientand clean, but stable energy structure. […] The transition itself will create new opportunities,
ranging from nuclear decommissioning to hydrogen fuel cells. The change will eventuallyprovide the country with sustainable growth.”279

Containment Liner Plate Corrosion
As noted above, the past few years have witnessed extended outages of South Korea’s nuclear
reactors. The principle reason for this has been that out of the 24 reactors South Korea operated(prior to startup of Shin-Kori-4 in 2019) 20 were found to have corrosion in the Containment
Liner Plates (CLP) and/or voids in the concrete structure.280 A total of 13 units have been foundto have both CLP corrosion and voids in their concrete, while seven have only void issues.
Nuclear reactor containment-buildings in Korea are insulated with a CLP of six millimeters
in diameter, and then concrete 1.2 meters in diameter thick. As the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission noted in 1997, “Any corrosion (metal thinning) of the liner plate could change thefailure threshold of the liner plate under a challenging environmental or accident condition.
Thinning changes the geometry of the liner plate, creating different transitions and strain
concentration conditions. This may reduce the design margin of safety against postulated
accident and environmental loads.”281
Under nuclear regulation evidence of structural deterioration that could affect the structural
integrity or leak-tightness of metal and concrete containments must be corrected before thecontainment can be returned to service. Corrosion of a liner plate can occur at a numberof places where the metal is exposed to moisture, or where moisture can condense (behind
insulation) or accumulate. Corrosion damage of CLPs historically has primarily been either the
result of embedded foreign material (e.g. wood) in contact with the liner resulting in corrosion
or inside initiated corrosion resulting from coating failures or moisture barrier degradation.
The corrosion repair has consisted of removal of the damaged liner section and embedded
foreign material, grouting the resulting void, and replacing the liner plate section.282
In June of 2016, the corrosion on the liner plate of Hanbit-2 was discovered during in‑service
inspection. The Nuclear Safety and Safety Commission (NSSC) ordered the licensee to performthe extensive examination for liner plates of all operating Pressurized Water Reactors (PWRs).
The Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety (KINS) reported that the discovery of the liner plate

279 - Kang Yoon-seung, “S. Korea increasingly ‘going clean’ in energy policy”, Yonhap, 7 June 2019, see https://en.yna.co.kr/view/
AEN20190607001051320, accessed 7 June 2019; and Sung Yoon‑mo, “The blueprint of energy policy in 2040 / Sung Yun-mo”, Ministerof Commerce, Industry and Energy, Hankyoreh, 6 June 2019 (in Korean), see http://www.hani.co.kr/arti/opinion/column/896925.html,
accessed 7 June 2019.
280 - Jeong Jong-Yeong, head of the nuclear industry division of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, as reported in Nucleonics
Week, “South Korea completing safety checks on all reactor containment structures”, 9 May 2019.
281 - Office Of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, “Information Notice No. 97-10: Liner Plate Corrosion in Concrete Containments”,
U.S.NRC, 13 March 1997, see https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/gen-comm/info-notices/1997/in97010.html, accessed
7 June 2019.
282 - Jason P. Petti, Dan Naus, et al., “Nuclear Containment Steel Liner Corrosion Workshop: Final Summary and Recommendation
Report”, Report SAND2010‑8718, Sandia National Laboratories, Operated for the U.S. Department of Energy, July 2011,see https://www.nrc.gov/docs/ML1121/ML112150012.pdf, accessed 7 June 2019.

| 102

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

corrosion was confirmation of the limitations of in‑service inspection.283 One example reportedby the NSSC in the past year was Hanbit‑1, where thickness of the CLP was found to be thinnerthan the standard.284
Root cause analysis of the causes of CLP corrosion reported by Korea Institute of Nuclear
Safety were predominately due to exposure to moisture (environment), as well as the presenceof foreign debris.285 It is unclear when the recommendations of lessons learned from the CLP
issue, including and specifically, over‑reliance on visual inspection rather than more extensive
limited ultrasonic testing, will be applied by the NSSC. The NSSC confirmed repairs whererequired at Hanbit‑1 and approved re-criticality of the reactor on 9 May 2019.
On 7 July 2019, Korean broadcaster MBC reported that KHNP had confirmed that 94 holes had
been found between the steel plate and concrete inside the reactor building of Hanbit-3 and96 holes in Hanbit-4. KHNP, according to MBC, explained that the holes found are up to 90 cm insize, but there would be “no problem with the structural stability of the containment.” Hanbit‑3
and ‑4 remain shut down.286 As of 19 July 2019, the NSSC had yet to confirm these reports.
As reported, the extended shutdown of multiple reactors in Korea over the past few years
has been used by those opposed to President Moon’s energy policy to criticize the NSSC for
prolonging inspections. In 2018, the availability factor for reactors in Korea declined further
to an average of 65.9 percent in 2018, compared with 71.2 percent in 2017, 79.7 percent in2016 and 85 percent in 2015.287 In 2018, the NSSC responded robustly to criticism of delayed
regulatory approval, noting: “When an urgent regulatory issue is found, such as the recent caseof corrosion in the Containment Liner Plate, the NSSC inspects all reactor units to find out
the cause of the same case and to ensure safety.”288 In May 2018, NSSC stated that in terms of
reduced nuclear output over the past year, “the operation rate fell to 71% last year and 58% last
January because KHNP’s facility maintenance has been prolonged due to the problems causedby their poor safety management practice [that] have been simultaneously found at all nuclear
power plants.”289

Hanbit Power Surges
Safety concerns with KHNP nuclear operations were triggered after it was disclosed on
10 May 2019 that Hanbit‑1 had been manually shut down following an instantaneous increase283 - Yonglak Paek, Sangyun Kim, et. al., “Introduction of Containment Liner Plate (CLP) Corrosion”, KINS, Transactionsof the Korean Nuclear Society Spring Meeting, 17–18 May 2018, see https://www.kns.org/files/pre_paper/39/18S189%EB%B0%B1%EC%9A%A9%EB%9D%BD.pdf, accessed 7 June 2019.; and NSSC, “NSSC Reveals the Inspection Results of the
Backside Corrosion of the CLPs in the Containment Buildings and Future Plans”, 27 July 2017.
284 - NSSC, “The NSSC Approved Criticality After Planned Overhaul”, 9 May 2019.
285 - Ibidem.
286 - MBC News, “190 hatch holes in the containment building of Hanvit 3. 4”, 7 July 2019,see https://n.news.naver.com/article/214/0000961974, accessed 19 July 2019.
287 - NW, “South Korea completing safety checks on all reactor containment structures”, 9 May 2019, op. cit.
288 - NSSC, “The NSSC Approves Resumption of NPPs Only When Safety Is Guaranteed”, Press Release, 1 February 2018,see http://www.nssc.go.kr/nssc/english/release/list.jsp?mode=view&article_no=44078&pager.offset=50&board_no=501, accessed 7 June 2019.
289 - NSSC, “Regarding the Chosul Ilbo op-ed titled “KEPCO in the red again, the nuclear phase-out policy is a nonsense that badly
affects only citizens”, 16 May 2018.

| 103

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 in thermal power.290 The reactor had been in maintenance outage since 2018 but authorized toreturn to service. The NSSC reported thermal power had exceeded the 5 percent limit set in thereactor license Technical Specifications, reaching 18 percent.291 This caused the temperature of
the reactor coolant to rise rapidly, along with the steam generator level. The rising level ofthe steam generator tripped the main feed water pump, activating the auxiliary water pump.
The NSSC reported that KHNP did not immediately shut down the reactor even though thethermal output of the reactor exceeded the limit during a test. In addition, the control rods
were operated by a person who does not hold a Reactor Operator’s license (RO). The reactor
was eventually shut down 12 hours after the initial event.292
The NSSC, in announcing expansion of their investigation on 20 May 2019, reported thatnegligence on the part of the Senior Reactor Operator (SRO) in supervising and directing
the operation is suspected, and therefore there is a possibility of violation of the Nuclear
Safety Act.293 Under the Act, KHNP is required to immediately shut down the reactor whenthermal power exceeds the limit. For the first time, the NSSC ordered special judiciary police
to investigate KHNP’s actions. The regulator ordered the suspension of operation of Hanbit‑1
at least until 20 July 2019, with the NSSC stating that “Since the thermal output rose sosuddenly, we’ll also have to check the integrity of the nuclear fuel. After thoroughly ensuringthat the nuclear rods and nuclear fuel are both safe, we’ll take action related to nuclear power
legislation.”294 On 24 June 2019, the NSSC released its interim report finding that: the dynamic
control rod reactivity measurement (DCRM), which has been used for 14 years, failed, and was
replaced with other test methods; that excessive withdrawal of control rods had occurred; that
control rods that became stuck was a result of latch jam (malfunctioning latch), accumulationof crud, influx of foreign materials, misalignment caused by aging and other causes; and thatthe operator had miscalculated reactivity and therefore the reactor went from sub-critical tosuper‑critical. The NSSC reported that the specific reactor operator responsible for calculating
reactivity did not have experience related to reactor startup operations.295

TAIWAN FOCUS
Taiwan has four operating reactor units at Kuosheng (Guosheng) and Maanshan, all owned
by Taipower, the state-owned utility monopoly.296 Since WNISR2018, the two reactors at
Chinshan (also spelled Jinshan) were announced for closure. In December 2018, it was made290 - NSSC, “The NSSC to Start Inspection of Hanbit Unit 1 After Manual Shutdown”, 10 May 2019,see http://www.nssc.go.kr/nssc/english/release/list.jsp?mode=view&article_no=45422&pager.offset=0&board_no=501, accessed 20 July 2019.
291 - NSSC, “The NSSC to Expand the Special Inspection on Manual Shutdown of Hanbit Unit 1”, 20 May 2019,see http://www.nssc.go.kr/nssc/english/release/list.jsp?mode=view&article_no=45431&pager.offset=10&board_no=501, accessed 20 July 2019.
292 - Hankyoreh, “Nuclear reactor kept running for 12 hours after it should have been shut down”, 21 May 2019,see http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_business/894763.html, accessed 20 July 2019.
293 - Ibidem.
294 - NEI, “Serious nuclear safety violation under investigation in South Korea”, 24 May 2019, see https://www.neimagazine.com/news/
newsserious-nuclear-safety-violation-under-investigation-in-south-korea-7224435, accessed 20 July 2019.
295 - NSSC, “The NSSC Announced Interim Results of Special Investigation on Hanbit Unit 1”, 24 June 2019,see http://www.nssc.go.kr/nssc/english/release/list.jsp?mode=view&article_no=45519&pager.offset=0&board_no=501, accessed 20 July 2019.
296 - Atomic Energy Council, “NPP Real-time Operating Status”, 9 June 2019, see https://www.aec.gov.tw/english/nuclear/index11.php,
accessed 9 June 2019.

| 104

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

official that Chinshan-1 would not restart. WNISR considers it closed as of December 2014,
when it was shut down for refueling and never put back on-line.
At the same time nuclear generation increased in 2018 with the restart of two reactors after
long outages. In 2018, there was 26.6 TWh of nuclear generation, compared with 21.6 TWh
in 2017, but still less than 30.5 TWh in 2016. Nuclear generation provided 11.4 percent of thecountry’s electricity in 2018, compared with 9.3 percent in 2017 and its maximum share of
41 percent in 1988.
The government of President Tsai Ing-wen of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which
was elected in May 2016, remains committed to a nuclear phase-out by 2025, while transitioning
the energy economy to renewables.297 Historical public opposition to nuclear power in Taiwan
dramatically escalated during and in the months following the start of the Fukushima Daiichi
accident and has been a principal driver of the nation’s ambitious plans for a renewable energy
transition. The “New Energy Policy Vision”, announced by the administration of President Tsaiin summer 2016, aims at establishing “a lowcarbon, sustainable, stable, high-quality andeconomically efficient energy system” through an energy transition and energy industry
reform.298 On 12 January 2017, the Electricity Act Amendment completed and passed its third
reading in the legislature, setting in place the mechanisms for Taiwan’s energy transition,
including nuclear phase-out.299 The law also gives priority to distributed renewable energy
generation, by which its generators will be given preferential rates, and small generators will
be exempt from having to prepare operating reserves. The monopoly of the state-run Taipower
will also be terminated.300
The plans for ending nuclear power progressed significantly during the past year with theapproval of Taipower’s decommissioning plan for the two units at Chinshan and preparations
for submission of the decommissioning plan for the two units at Kuosheng, which are due toclose in December 2021 and December 2023 respectively.
To reach its renewable energy goals of 20 percent of the nation’s generation by 2025,
approximately 27 GW of new offshore wind and solar capacity will be required.301 In the past
year, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) awarded grid capacity to nine developers for
14 offshore wind projects, with 738 MW operating capacity by 2020 and 4,762 MW between
2021 and 2025.302 The attractive feed-in tariffs offered for offshore have attracted overseas

297 - MOEA, “Taiwan’s New Energy Policy”, 6 April 2017, Ministry of Economic Affairs,
see https://www.moea.gov.tw/Mns/ ietc_e/content/Content. aspx?menu_id=21511, accessed 9 June 2019.
298 - Ibidem.
299 - Bureau of Energy, “The Three-Stage Reading Process for Electricity Act Amendment Completed Moving Towards the 2025
Target of Nuclear-Free Homeland”, Ministry of Economic Affairs, 1 March 2017, see https://eng.wra.gov.tw/7618/7662/7717/30138/,
accessed 9 June 2019.
300 - The China Post, “Lawmakers OK wide-ranging amendments to Electricity Act”, 12 January 2017,see https://chinapost.nownews.com/20170112-14213, accessed 9 June 2019.
301 - Miaojung Lin, Lianting Tu, “Taiwan Lays Plans for $59 Billion in Renewable-Energy Finance”, Bloomberg, 18 June 2017,see https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-06-18/taiwan-lays-plans-for-59-billion-in-renewable-energy-finance, accessed
9 July 2019.
302 - Bureau of Energy, “Offshore wind auction winners announced! 2 winners with 4 projects will provide 1,664 MW by2025”, Ministry of Enconomic Affairs, Press Release, 26 July 2018, see https://www.moeaboe.gov.tw/ECW/english/news/News.
aspx?kind=6&menu_id=958&news_id=16111.

| 105

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 companies,303 with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. (MHI)‑Vesta signing contracts for
localized production of wind turbine towers and blades with the objective of supplying both
Taiwan and the wider Asia region.304 In the case of solar PV, the target is for 20 GW by 2025,
and with 2.24 GW installed as of September 2018,305 there will need to be a rapid scaling up if
Taiwan is to meet its target.

Reactor Closures
On 5 December 2018, Taipower announced the closure of Chinshan-1, four years after being
taken off‑line.306 It had not operated since 10 December 2014. The Atomic Energy Council (AEC)
had approved the reactor for restart, but lawmakers required the issue to be addressed by thenational parliament prior to restart.307 Both reactors at Chinshan are Mark 1 BWRs, whichbegan operation in 1977 and 1978 respectively. In May 2016, environmental groups launcheda court case against the restart of Chinshan-1 calling it the “most dangerous reactor in theworld”.308 Taipower’s decommissioning plan for both units at Chinshan had been approved by
the AEC in June 2017.309
Chinshan-1 is the first commercial reactor in Taiwan to be closed for decommissioning.
Chinshan‑2 has remained shut down since June 2017—thus considered in Long-Term
Outage (LTO) as of 1 July 2019—was officially closed on 15 July 2019, when its 40-year
operating license expired. On 16 July 2019, the AEC issued the Decommissioning Permit for
the Chinshan nuclear plant in accordance with the “Nuclear Reactor Facilities Regulation
Act”.310 (See Table 7 for details).

Referendum
An effort by pro-nuclear activists to overturn the government’s nuclear phase-out plans
through a referendum has failed to change the reality that Taiwan is exiting nuclear energy.
The referendum was held in November 2018, sponsored by those closely tied to the opposition
Chinese Nationalist Party (Kuomintang or KMT). So-called “Referendum No. 16”, asked: “Do
you agree that subparagraph 1, Article 95 of the Electricity Act, which reads: ‘Nuclear-energy-

303 - Heidi Vella, “Taiwan: pursuing a new green energy revolution in the East”, Power Technology, 5 November 2018,see https://www.power-technology.com/features/taiwan-pursuing-new-green-energy-revolution-east/, accessed 9 July 2019.
304 - MHI Vestas, “MHI Vestas Signs Tower Contract, Firms Up Localisation Plans in Taiwan”, Press Release, 30 October 2018,see http://www.mhivestasoffshore.com/tower-contract-tw/, accessed 9 July 2019.
305 - Rhea Tsao, “Will Taiwan meet its 20 GW solar goal by 2025?”, PV Magazine, 7 September 2018,see https://www.pv-magazine.com/2018/09/07/will-taiwan-meet-its-20-gw-solar-goal-by-2025/, accessed 9 July 2019.
306 - Taipower, “Nuclear No. 1 machine No. 1 machine license expired according to law, pending decommissioning, officiallystarted decommissioning”, Press Release, 5 December 2018 (in Chinese), see https://www.taipower.com.tw/tc/news_info.
aspx?id=2732&chk=0f0e1a36-c68b-43c1-81d9-0144b5df4475&mid=17&param=pn%3d4%26mid%3d17%26key%3d, accessed 8 June 2019.
307 - NW, “Chinshan-1 might not restart until after September: lawmakers”, 2 July 2015.
308 - Chen Wei-han, “Activists file suit over Jinshan reactor”, Taipei Times, 31 May 2016,see http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2016/05/31/2003647555, accessed 8 June 2019.
309 - Ibidem.
310 - AEC, “The Atomic Energy Council Issued the Decommissioning Permit for Chinshan Nuclear Power Plant on July 12, 2019”, Press
Release, 12 July 2019, see https://www.aec.gov.tw/, accessed 26 July 2019.

| 106

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

based power-generating facilities shall wholly stop running by 2025,’ should be abolished?”
The referendum passed with 5.89 million “yes” votes and 4.01 million “no” votes.
However, according to Atomic Energy Council regulations, a proposal to update a nuclear
power generator’s operating permit must be filed five to 15 years before the permit expires,
according to AEC Deputy Minister Chiou Syh-tsong.311 The deadlines for extending operations
at the Chinshan and Kuosheng nuclear power plants had already passed by the time of thereferendum. The licenses for Guosheng’s two reactors expire on 27 December 2021, and
14 March 2023. Operations at the Jinshan plant’s two reactors have been suspended and, while
decommissioning plans are going through an environmental impact assessment, they would
remain suspended until they can be officially decommissioned, according to the AEC.312 The
only licenses that could in theory be extended are for the two reactors at Maanshan as they
expire on 26 July 2024 and 17 May 2025. There is no indication, though, that a license extension
is to be applied for Maanshan‑1, which would be due no later than 26 July 2019.
At a Chernobyl commemorative rally in Taipei in April 2019, President Tsai Ing-wen said thatas long as she and her administration remain in power, she will stick to her goal of a “nuclearfree homeland.”313 Taiwan is at no risk of an electricity shortage, so its fourth nuclear power
plant will not be put into operation, she said, referring to the Lungmen plant that had been
under construction for 15 years (see No Future for Lungmen? for details). Critical to theorientation of energy policy in Taiwan will be whether or not Tsai Ing-wen secures re-election
as President on 11 January 2020.
On 7 May 2019, as formally required following the referendum, but with no impact on plans
for Taiwan’s nuclear phase-out, the Legislative Yuan abolished a provision in Article 95 of theElectricity Act stipulating that all nuclear energy generation facilities must stop operations
before 2025.314

No Future for Lungmen?
On 1 February 2019, Taipower, the operator of the nation’s nuclear plants, effectively ruledout any prospects for the operation of the two Lungmen reactors, but without making aformal decision to do so.315 The two General Electric (GE) 1300 MW Advanced Boiling Water
Reactors (ABWR) had been listed as “under construction” at Lungmen, near Taipei, since1998 and 1999 respectively. According to the AEC, as of the end of March 2014, Lungmen1
was 97.7 percent complete,316 while Unit 2 was 91 percent complete. The plant was, as of
311 - Sean Lin, “Provision on halting nuclear power plants removed”, Taipei Times, 8 May 2019,see http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2019/05/08/2003714760, accessed 9 June 2019.
312 - Lin Chia-han, “Cabinet to examine options for nuclear power: William Lai”, Taipei Times, 27 November 2018,see http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2018/11/27/2003705010, accessed 9 June 2019.
313 - Wen Kuei-hsiang et al., “Thousands join anti-nuclear rallies in Taipei, Kaohsiung”, Focus Taiwan News Channel, 27 April 2019,see http://focustaiwan.tw/search/201904270012.aspx?q=lungmen, accessed 8 June 2019.
314 - Sean Lin, “Provision on halting nuclear power plants removed”, Taipei Times, 8 May 2019,see http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2019/05/08/2003714760, accessed 9 June 2019.
315 - Taipower, “Nuclear four restarts difficult 3 years to complete”, Press Release, 1 February 2019 (in Chinese),see https://www.taipower.com.tw/tc/news_info.aspx?id=2790&chk=a33e9884-eff5-468e-b549-7a3177548639&mid=17&param=pn%3d3%
26mid%3d17%26key%3d, accessed 9 July 2019.
316 - Planning Department, “Status and Challenges of Nuclear Power in Taiwan”, AEC, April 2014,see http://www.aec.gov.tw/english/whatsnew/files/20140506-5.pdf, accessed 9 June 2019.

| 107

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 108

2014, estimated to have cost US$9–9.9 billion so far.317 After multiple delays, rising costs,
and large‑scale public and political opposition, including through local referendums, on
28 April 2014, the then Premier Jiang Yi-huah announced that Lungmen-1 will be mothballed
after the completion of safety checks, while work on Unit 2 at the site was to stop. The
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government was elected with a pledge to halt constructionof the Lungmen reactors, and with a nuclear phase-out planned for 2025, there is little prospectthat they will ever operate. A formal decision on terminating the project would potentiallyforce Taipower to file for bankruptcy as the listing of Lungmen as an investment asset would
put the company in the red.318 Taipower’s February 2019 announcement of the time periodrequired to complete Lungmen is not a formal decision to abandon Lungmen. With the official
freeze of construction, WNISR took the units off the listing in 2014, where they remain as of
1 July 2019. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) continues to list the reactors as
under construction.319
Any resumption of Lungmen construction would require Taiwan’s legislature and AEC
approval, which, given the current government, is not going to happen. Taipower explained in
February 2019 that it would not be able to replace major components installed nearly 20 years
ago, including instrumentation and control as well as renegotiation with the main supplier
General Electric (GE).320 Taipower stated that it could take 6–7 years to complete construction
if all of these obstacles were overcome.
The announcement from Taipower was made one day after the Ministry of Economic Affairs
published its revised national energy policy, according to which the Chinshan nuclear plant
would be decommissioned as planned, there would be no extension for the Kuosheng andMaanshan reactors and the Lungmen plant would not be operated.321
Table 7 | Scheduled Closure Dates for Nuclear Reactors in Taiwan 2018–2025
ReactorType

Capacity MW

Grid Connection(dd/mm/yyyy)

Date of Cessation of Operation(dd/mm/yyyy)

Chinshan-1

BWR

604

16/11/1977

05/12/ 2018a

Chinshan-2

BWR

604

19/12/1978

15/07/2019

Kuosheng-1

BWR

951

21/05/1981

27/12/ 2021

Kuosheng-2

BWR

951

29/06/1982

14/03/ 2023

Maanshan-1

PWR

890

09/05/1984

26/07/ 2024

Maanshan-2

PWR

890

25/02/1985

17/05/ 2025

Notea – Official closure date for Chinshan-1

Sources: Taipower, 2017, WNISR, 2019317 - WNN, “Political discord places Lungmen on hold”, 28 April 2014,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Political-discord-places-Lungmen-on-hold-2804144.html, accessed 9 June 2019.
318 - Lee I-chia, “Nuclear Power Debate: Scrapping plant would ruin Taipower: Duh”, Taipei Times, 29 April 2014,see http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2014/04/29/2003589160, accessed 9 June 2019.
319 - IAEA-PRIS, “Taiwan, China”, as of 10 June 2019,see https://pris.iaea.org/PRIS/CountryStatistics/CountryDetails.aspx?current=TW, accessed 11 June 2019.
320 - NEI, “Taipower rules out operation of Lungmen”, 6 February 2019,see https://www.neimagazine.com/news/newstaipower-rules-out-operation-of-lungmen-6970272, accessed 9 July 2019.
321 - Liao Yu-yang, Ko Lin, “Taiwan will not face electricity shortages: economics minister”, Focus Taiwan, 11 February 2019,see http://focustaiwan.tw/search/201902110024.aspx?q=nuclear%20energy, accessed 9 July 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

On 30 May 2019, Taipower announced that it had agreed to settle a dispute out of court with
GE over payment for components for the Lungmen project.322 Taipower agreed to pay GE,
which designed the plant’s reactors, US$22.50 million as part of the out-of-court settlement.
GE had filed two arbitration cases against the company at the International Chamber ofCommerce (ICC) in September 2015. In January 2019, the ICC ruled that Taipower should pay
GE NT$4.88 billion (US$158 million) under the terms of the contract.323 In the second case, yet
to be ruled on, GE was seeking more than NT$2 billion (US$66 million) from the state utility
firm for equipment already installed at the plant.
The only, and currently remote, prospects for Lungmen being completed and operated would
be an election victory for the KMT party in the 2020 presidential elections.

UNITED KINGDOM
FOCUS
In 2018, the United Kingdom operated 15 reactors, which provided 59.1 TWh (a 7.5 percent fallfrom 63.9 TWh in 2017, due to extended outages) or 17.7 percent of the country’s electricity,
down from a maximum of 26.9 percent in 1997. The U.K.’s reactor fleet achieved an averageload factor of 68.4 percent in 2018, a significant drop of 6.3 percentage points over 2017, but
still better than the lifetime average of 63.2 percent. The average age of the U.K. fleet stands at
35.4 years (see Figure 31).
2018 was a remarkable year for the nuclear industry in the U.K., and historically it may well beseen as a pivotal year in the decline of the sector. Some of the key developments were: the extent
of the age related cracking of the two Advanced Gas-cooled Reactors (AGR) at Hunterston,leading to their extended closure and potentially their retirement; the abandonment of boththe Horizon and the NuGen new build programs; and the start of the closure of the Thermal
Oxide Reprocessing Plant (THORP) at Sellafield.
A total of 30 power reactors have been permanently closed, all 26 Magnox reactors, both fast
reactors, a prototype Advanced Gas-cooled Reactor (AGR) at Windscale and a prototype SteamGenerating Heavy Water Reactor (SGHWR) at Winfrith. The U.K.’s seven second-generation
nuclear stations, each with two AGRs, are all operating past the end of their original 25 year
design lives. However, their owner EDF Energy, is planning to further extend the lifetimes of
the two oldest AGR stations until 2023 (Hinkley Point B, Hunterson B). The other five stations(Dungeness B, Hartlepool, Heysham‑1, Heysham‑2 and Torness) are all due to complete theirmandatory 10-year Periodic Safety Reviews in 2019 or 2020 and it will then become clearer
how long EDF will be able to operate these plants. The country’s only Pressurized Water
Reactor (PWR), at Sizewell B, is expected to operate until at least 2035.324
322 - Tsai Peng-min, Ko Lin, “Taipower, GE reach out-of-court settlement”, Focus Taiwan, 30 May 2019,see http://focustaiwan.tw/news/aeco/201905300026.aspx, accessed 8 June 2019.
323 - King & Spalding, “GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy Wins a US$158 Million Award in ICC Arbitration Against Taiwan”, 21 February 2019,see https://www.kslaw.com/news-and-insights/ge-hitachi-nuclear-energy-wins-a-us158-million-award-in-icc-arbitration-against-taiwan,
accessed 8 June 2019.
324 - EDF, “Nuclear Lifetime Management”, Undated, see https://www.edfenergy.com/energy/lifetime-management,
accessed 7 May 2018.

| 109

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

EDF Energy is owned largely by EDF, although Centrica has a minority share (20 percent) in
EDF Energy’s U.K. nuclear subsidiary, Lake Acquisitions. However, Centrica has been trying tosell its stake since 2013 and is increasingly vocal in its desire to leave the nuclear business. In
February 2018, CEO Iain Conn said that “we would hope to divest of our shareholding in U.K.
nuclear power by the end of 2020”.325 In its 2018 annual report, Centrica stated that it would
give an update of the “prospects for a trade sale of our Nuclear investment” in the Interim
Results, to be published in July 2019.326 It has been reported that the Chinese firm CGN isinterested in the deal. Uncertainty over the operational life of the AGR fleet is likely to impact
on the timing, attractiveness and price of the proposed sale. EDF has also been trying to reduce
its stake in Lake Acquisitions to 51 percent since 2015 but, like Centrica, with no success.
Managing reactors as they age is a constant problem for any technology design, and the AGRs
are no exception. In recent years problems with the core’s graphite moderator bricks haveraised concerns. In particular, keyway root cracks, exceeding the number the U.K. regulator,
the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) previously deemed permissible, have been found at
one of the Hunterston B reactors. This is of concern as it can lead to the degradation of the
keying system, a vital component as it forms the channels within the reactor, which housethe fuel, the control rods and the coolant (CO2). Such cracking or distortion could affect theinsertion of the control rods or the flow of the coolant. There are also issues of erosion of thegraphite and a number of the AGRs are close to the erosion limit set by the ONR. With age, thegraphite bricks also distort and may eventually compromise the operation of the safety control
rods. These issues are likely to be the life-limiting factor for the AGRs, as it is not possible toreplace the graphite bricks.
In March 2018, during a scheduled outage, EDF discovered a higher number of keyway root
cracks in the older of the two reactors than was predicted by its computer models in 2016.
Then in May that year, EDF announced that Hunterston B‑1’s present shutdown would be
extended for further investigation and revised modelling, with the intention of restarting thereactor before the end of 2018. In late December 2018, EDF stated that it had “observed around
100 keyway root cracks in Reactor 3. This is from the inspection of just over a quarter of thereactor. Using modelling to project the number of cracks across the whole reactor our best
estimate of the current number of cracks is around 370. This takes the core over the operational
limit of 350 contained in the existing safety case for that period of operation.”327
In December 2018, EDF estimated that reactors would be restarted in March 2019 (B‑1) and
April 2019 (B‑2), but this deadline passed and, as of June 2019, restarts were scheduled forlater in July 2019 (B‑2) and October 2019 (B‑1).328 Age-related problems have also been foundat similar‑age reactors at Dungeness B, with Unit 2 closed for what was supposed to be a
12‑week outage in August 2018 and then Unit 1 for “common statutory outage work”, withboth expected to restart in April 2019. However, the outage has been extended, with current
325 - NIW, “Weekly Roundup”, 23 March 2018.
326 - Centrica, “Annual Report and Accounts 2018”, 2019, see https://annual-report.centrica.com/assets/pdf/2018%20Annual%20
Report.pdf, accessed 22 April 2019.
327 - EDF Energy, “Hunterston Graphite Inspections—December 2018”, December 2018,see https://www.edfenergy.com/sites/default/files/hunterston_december_update_final.pdf, accessed 22 April 2019.
328 - EDF Energy, “Community Update— Hunterston B”, 20 June 2019, see https://www.edfenergy.com/media-centre/news-releases/
community-update-8, accessed 20 June 2019. In August 209, EDF obtained permission to restart B-2 for a 4-month period with anuncertain follow-up.

| 110

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 111

restart dates for the units being September and October 2019. In June 2019, in the Office for
Nuclear Regulation’s Annual report, it was stated that Dungeness B and Hunterston B were inan “enhanced level of regulatory attention”, rather than routine. This was because assessmentof the cracks was “intensive” and required “substantial additional effort.”329
The impact of the cracking on the lifetime of the AGR fleet is yet to be determined. The tworeactors at Hinkley Point B, the sister station to Hunterston, are also due for statutory outages
with unit 1 starting in March 2019 and then returning to service in June 2019, and unit 2
expected in April 2021.
Figure 31 | Age Distribution of U.K. Nuclear Fleet

Age of UK Nuclear Fleet
as of 1 July 2019

Reactor Age

8

21–30 Years
31–40 Years
41 Years and Over4
3

50 Number of Reactors
by Age Class

15 Reactors
Mean Age35.4 Years© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

The development of new nuclear reactors in the U.K. has been slow and will be significantly lesssuccessful than envisaged. The current development cycle was “officially launched” in 2006,
when then Prime Minister Tony Blair stated that nuclear issues were “back on the agenda witha vengeance”.330 In July 2011, the Government released the National Policy Statement (NPS) for
Nuclear Power Generation.331 The eight “potentially suitable” sites considered in the documentfor deployment “before the end of 2025” are exclusively current or past nuclear power plantsites in England or Wales, except for one new site, Moorside, adjacent to the fuel‑chain facilities
at Sellafield. Northern Ireland and Scotland are not included. The Scottish governmentis opposed to new-build and said it would not allow replacement of Scotland’s Torness andHunterston plants once they are shut down.332

329 - Office for Nuclear Regulation, “Annual Report and Accounts 2018/19”, HC2271, June 2019,see http://www.onr.org.uk/documents/2019/onr-annual-report-and-accounts-2018-19.pdf, accessed 11 July 2019.
330 - BBC, “Blair backs nuclear power plans”, 16 May 2006,
see http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4987196.stm, accessed 7 May 2018.
331 - DECC, “National Policy Statement for Nuclear Power Generation”, U.K. Government, July 2011.
332 - Scottish Government, “Energy: Frequently Asked Questions”, 25 June 2009,see http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Business-Industry/Energy/Facts/faqs, accessed 7 May 2018.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Hinkley Point C Construction Start – Not That Concrete?
EDF Energy was given planning permission to build two reactors at Hinkley Point in April 2013.
In October 2015, EDF and the U.K. Government333 announced updates to the October 2013provisional agreement of commercial terms of the deal for the £16 billion (US$20 billion)
overnight cost of construction of Hinkley Point C (HPC).334 The estimated price of construction
has since risen and as of 2017 stood at £201519.6 billion (US$201525.3 billion), up from the £201518bn(US$201523.2 billion) quoted in 2016; no official update has been given since. EDF says the £1.5bn(US$1.9 billion) increase announced in 2017 results mainly “from a better understanding of
the design adapted to the requirements of the British regulators, the volume and sequencing ofwork on site and the gradual implementation of supplier contracts”335.
EDF maintains the official construction-start target date as “mid-2019” and the “initial delivery
objective for Unit 1 at the end of 2025”.336 However, EDF have acknowledged that pouring thefirst safety-related concrete for Hinkley Point C‑1 in mid-2019 can only happen if “the final
design, which is on a tight schedule, is completed by the end of 2018.”337
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) dates formal start of construction for anuclear power plant as the pouring of first structural concrete and this occurred for the
first reactor at HPC on 11 December 2018. WNISR is thus considering Hinkley Point C underconstruction as of that date.338 However, an EDF Energy spokesperson told WNISR in June 2018that “the recognised ‘construction start’ has not yet been reached. In the HPC project, thisdate is termed ‘J0’ and is scheduled to be reached in June 2019” and “It was not the base slab of
the reactor building. As I say, this is due to happen in June 2019.” [Emphasis by EDF Energy].339
This is despite, the “site construction director” stating in spring 2018 that “activity is ramping
up with over 3,000 people now on-site (...) and over 100,000 tonnes of concrete has alreadybeen poured”.340 On 28 June 2019, EDF Energy announced that “Hinkley Point C has hit its
biggest milestone yet on schedule. The completion of the base for the first reactor, known as‘J‑zero’, means that the construction of the nuclear buildings above ground can now begin in
earnest”.341
By completing a large amount of the work before formally declaring construction began, EDF
is able to claim a shortened construction timetable and be more likely to meet the construction
deadline. Given the construction delays in China, Finland and France, this could be of primary
importance for EDF.
333 - DECC, “Hinkley Point C to power six million UK homes”, Press Release, U.K. Government, 21 October 2015,see https://www.gov.uk/government/news/hinkley-point-c-to-power-six-million-uk-homes, accessed 7 May 2018.
334 - The 2013 and 2015 figures are all in 2012 money unless otherwise specified.
335 - EDF, “Clarifications on Hinkley Point C project”, Press Release, 3 July 2017, see https://www.edf.fr/en/the-edf-group/dedicatedsections/journalists/all-press-releases/clarifications-on-hinkley-point-c-project, accessed 6 August 2019.
336 - Ibidem.
337 - Ibidem.
338 - For details, see WNISR, “The Oddly Discreet Construction Start of Hinkley Point C”, 29 December 2018,see https://www.worldnuclearreport.org/The-Oddly-Discreet-Construction-Start-of-Hinkley-Point-C.html, accessed 6 August 2019.
339 - Gordon Bell, EDF Energy, spokesperson for Hinkley Point C, personal communication, email to Mycle Schneider, 8 June 2018.
340 - EDF Energy, “Reactor one takes shape—Achievements at Hinkley Point C”, Plugged in to Hinkley Point C, Spring 2018, p.4,
see https://www.edfenergy.com/sites/default/files/edf_4731_plugged_in_spring_1.18_14_web_dps.pdf, accessed 10 June 2019.
341 - EDF Energy, “Hinkley Point C hits its biggest milestone yet”, 28 June 2019, see https://www.edfenergy.com/energy/nuclear-newbuild-projects/hinkley-point-c/news-views/hinkley-point-c-hits-biggest-milestone-yet, accessed 10 July 2019.

| 112

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

The key points of the Hinkley deal were a Contract for Difference (CfD), effectively a guaranteed
real electricity price for 35 years, which, depending on the number of units ultimately built,
would be £89.5–92.5/MWh, in 2012 values (US$115–120/MWh), with annual increases linked to
the retail price index. The cost of this support scheme has skyrocketed, with the U.K. National
Audit Office (NAO) suggesting that the additional ‘top-up’ payments—the difference between
the wholesale price (as of early 2018 at about £50/MWh) and the agreed fixed price (or Strike
Price), required through the CfD—have increased from £6.1 billion (US$20139.9 billion) in
October 2013 to £29.7 billion (US$201641.2 billion) in March 2016, due to falling wholesale
electricity prices. This is the discounted estimate; the undiscounted estimate would be closer
to £50 billion. The NAO also stated that “the [Government] Department’s deal for HPC haslocked consumers into a risky and expensive project with uncertain strategic and economic
benefits.”342
There was an expectation that HPC's construction would be primarily funded by debt
(borrowing) backed by U.K. sovereign loan guarantees, expected to be about £17 billion(US$26.9 billion). EDF announced in November 2015 its intention to sell non-core assets
worth up to €10 billion (US$11.4 billion), including a stake in Lake Acquisitions, to help finance
Hinkley and other capital‑intensive projects.343 This includes the partial sale of the Frenchhigh voltage network (RTE) to the state bank Caisse des Dépôts in March 2017, which raised€4 billion (US$20184.6 billion),344 and in November 2017 the sale of EDF Polska assets, including
electricity and combined heat and power plants to Polska Grupa Energetyczna (PGE) for about€1.4 billion (US$20181.6 billion).345
The May administration finally approved the HPC project in September 2016, with thegovernment retaining a “special share”, that would give it a veto right over future ownershipif national security concerns arose.346 The expected composition of the consortium owning
the plant had changed from October 2013 to October 2015. The effective bankruptcy anddismantling of AREVA made their planned contribution impossible, the Chinese stake
had fallen to 33.5 percent and the other investors had not materialized, leaving EDF with
66.5 percent. In May 2016, the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) indicated it didn’t
rule out participation in the 33.5 percent Chinese stake.347 However, no changes were reported
as of mid-2019.

342 - Sir Amyas Morse KCB, “Hinkley Point C”, Comptroller and Auditor General, Department for Business, Energy & Industrial
Strategy, U.K. National Audit Office, 23 June 2017, see https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Hinkley-Point-C.pdf,
accessed 7 May 2018.
343 - Michael Stothard, “EDF looks to sell €10bn of assets to boost balance sheet”, Financial Times, 18 October 2015,see https://www.ft.com/content/fcd6a462-7578-11e5-a95a-27d368e1ddf7, accessed 7 May 2018.
344 - EDF, “EDF finalised the indirect sale of 49.9% of RTE assets to Caisse des Dépôts and CNP Assurances”, Press Release,
31 March 2017, see https://www.edf.fr/en/the-edf-group/dedicated-sections/journalists/all-press-releases/edf-finalised-the-indirectsale-of-49-9-of-rte-assets-to-caisse-des-depots-and-cnp-assurances, accessed 4 July 2018.
345 - EDF, “EDF finalizes the disposal of EDF Polska’s assets to PGE”, 14 November 2017, Press Release,see https://www.edf.fr/en/the-edf-group/dedicated-sections/journalists/all-press-releases/edf-finalizes-the-disposal-of-edf-polska-sassets-to-pge, accessed 4 July 2018.
346 - Rowena Mason, Simon Goodley, “Hinkley Point C nuclear power station gets government green light”, The Guardian,
15 September 2016, see http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/sep/15/hinkley-point-c-nuclear-power-station-gets-go-ahead,
accessed 7 May 2018.
347 - The Times, “Chinese give Hinkley Point nuclear project a boost”, 9 May 2016.

| 113

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Other U.K. New-Build Projects
Chinese stakes in the mooted follow-on Sizewell C project would be limited to 20 percent,leaving EDF with 80 percent. Given the problems EDF is having financing Hinkley, this makes
the Sizewell project appear implausible. However, EDF is allowing CGN to use the Bradwell site
it had bought as back‑up, if either the Hinkley or Sizewell sites proved not to be viable. CGN
plans to build its own technology, the Hualong One (or HPR-1000) at this site, with EDF taking
a 33.5 percent stake.348 In January 2017, the U.K. Government requested that the regulator begin
the Generic Design Assessment (GDA) of the HPR‑1000 reactor,349 and by November 2018
the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) and Environment Agency had completed an initialhigh‑level scrutiny of the design.350 Work is expected to be complete in 2021.
Of potential importance to the Bradwell project was that in March 2019, Rolls‑Royce confirmedthat it was reviewing its options for its civil nuclear industry. This could include selling its
civilian nuclear arm, which manufactures controls and systems technologies including its
supply deal with CGN for reactors in the U.K.351
Foreign ownership of critical infrastructure hasn’t had the same degree of concern as inother countries. Even for nuclear power, CGN’s proposal to build, operate and own a reactor
designed in China has not been vetoed, despite growing action in the United States to stop theexport of nuclear technology to China for “national security” concerns.352 However, aware of
the sensitivities, CGN has indicated that it might be willing to hand over ownership of Bradwellto another operator if that might reduce concerns.353
At the beginning of 2018, there were two other consortia planning to build new nuclear powerin the U.K., but these projects were both shelved over the year.

Moorside
In June 2014, NuGen finalized a new ownership structure with Toshiba-Westinghouse(60 percent) and Engie (40 percent), as Iberdrola sold its shares to Toshiba‑Westinghouse.
The group planned to build three Toshiba‑Westinghouse‑designed AP‑1000 reactors at theMoorside site, with units proposed to begin operating in 2024.354 However, Westinghouse, after
its financial collapse, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S. in March 2017. This
had a disastrous impact on the parent company Toshiba, when the extent of Westinghouse’s
348 - EDF Energy, “Agreements in place for construction of Hinkley Point C nuclear power station”, Press Release, 21 October 2015,see https://uk.ambafrance.org/IMG/pdf/edf_press_release_hpc.pdf?6641/5060ea5271274dd6fc8234726c5962c9813fc14e, accessed
7 May 2018.
349 - ONR, “Assessing new nuclear reactor designs—Generic Design Assessment Periodic Report: November 2016 – January 2017”,
March 2017, see http://www.onr.org.uk/new-reactors/reports/gda-quarterly-report-nov16-jan17.pdf, accessed 7 May 2018.
350 - ONR, “UK HPR1000 completes GDA Step 2”, 15 November 2018, see http://news.onr.org.uk/2018/11/uk-hpr1000-completes-gdastep-2/, accessed 27 May 2019.
351 - NIW, “Weekly Roundup - Rolls-Royce Mulls selling nuclear business”, 8 March 2019.
352 - Jessica Resnick-Ault, “U.S. tightens controls on China imports of nuclear components”, Reuters, 11 October 2018,see https://uk.reuters.com/article/us-china-usa-nuclear/u-s-tightens-controls-on-china-imports-of-nuclear-componentsidUKKCN1ML2V9, accessed 22 April 2019.
353 - Sylvia Pfeifer, Myles McCormick, “Chinese willing to hand over control of UK nuclear plant”, Financial Times, 18 September 2018,see https://www.ft.com/content/1a44e152-b762-11e8-b3ef-799c8613f4a1, accessed 22 April 2019.
354 - NucNet, “Toshiba Finalises Controlling Stake In UK Nuclear Company NuGen”, 30 June 2014, see https://www.nucnet.org/allthe-news/2014/06/30/toshiba-finalises-controlling-stake-in-uk-nuclear-company-nugen, accessed 7 May 2018.

| 114

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

problems came to light.355 The perilous state of the project also led to Engie selling its remaining
40 percent for US$138 million to Toshiba‑Westinghouse, which was contractually obliged tobuy them at the pre‑determined price.356 In late April 2017, the national press reported thatToshiba was preparing to mothball the project, warning suppliers of spending cuts and ordering
seconded staff to return to their employers.357 Amid this economic chaos, the U.K. Office of
Nuclear Regulation had approved the AP‑1000 reactor design on 30 March 2017.358
Toshiba was initially in talks with both Korea’s KEPCO (Korea Electric Power Corporation),a nationally owned utility and reactor vendor, and CGN of China as potential buyers of
NuGen. In October 2017, the CEO of NuGen said he expected to find a buyer by early 2018,359
but KEPCO put off a decision until the autumn of 2018 and said they would only proceed if“a preliminary analysis concludes the project serves the national interests.”360 However, inNovember 2018 Toshiba announced that it was winding down NuGen, without finding a buyer.
This might open up the opportunities for others to buy the Moorside site and build their own
reactors—although this has not yet occurred. In the meantime, the Moorside site has reverted
to the U.K.’s Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA).

Wylfa and Oldbury
The other company that was involved in proposed nuclear new-build is Horizon Nuclear,which was bought by the Japanese company Hitachi‑GE from German utilities E.ON and
Rheinisch‑Westfälisches Elektrizitätswerk (RWE) for an estimated price of £700 million(US$1.2 billion) in 2012. The company submitted its Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR)
design for technical review, whilst at the time making it clear that its continuation in the project
would depend on the outcome of the negotiations with the Government.361 The ABWR, two of
which were planned for both the Wylfa and Oldbury sites, passed the justification procedure in
January 2015, and the Generic Design Assessment (GDA) was completed in December 2017.362
In April 2017, Horizon Nuclear applied for a site license at the Wylfa location. If everything hadgone according to plan, the reactor would have started up in 2025.363
Hitachi was looking for partners in their project, hoping to reduce its stake to 50 percent and,
if no other investors could be found, the company would have to withdraw. This is because

355 - Kana Inagaki, “Westinghouse files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection”, Financial Times, 29 March 2017,see https://www.ft.com/content/ba9d8e42-de63-320e-b29c-70dcf19e1f28, accessed 7 May 2018.
356 - Marcus Leroux, “French investor deals new blow to nuclear project”, The Times, 5 April 2017.
357 - John Collingridge, “Toshiba mothballs Cumbrian nuclear power project”, Sunday Times, 30 April 2017.
358 - ONR, “Design acceptance for the AP1000 reactor”, 30 March 2017,see http://news.onr.org.uk/2017/03/design-acceptance-for-the-ap1000-reactor/, accessed 7 May 2018.
359 - NIW, “United Kingdom”, 6 October 2017.
360 - Phil Chaffee, “With Eyes on Saudi Arabia, Kepco Treads Water in the UK”, NIW, 4 May 2018.
361 - Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, “Hitachi reluctant about UK nuclear reactor plan”, The Telegraph, 14 April 2013,see https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/energy/9993564/Hitachi-reluctant-about-UK-nuclear-reactor-plan.html,
accessed 7 May 2018.
362 - ONR, “Assessement of reactors—UK-ABWR—Design acceptance”, December 2017,see http://www.onr.org.uk/new-reactors/uk-abwr/design-acceptance.htm, accessed 7 May 2018.
363 - WNN, “Horizon clears justification hurdle”, 28 January 2015,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Horizon-clears-justification-hurdle-2801151.html, accessed 7 May 2018.

| 115

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

an internal review by the company had found that the cost of construction was likely to be
US$27.5 billion, considered too big a risk for the company on its own.364
In order to attract a partner, Hitachi sought clarification on the financial support that the U.K.
Government was willing to facilitate or the extent to which the Government would invest.
One option being considered was a trilateral partnership between Hitachi and the U.K. andJapanese Governments. It was reported that the U.K. Government was prepared to makeavailable £13.3billion (US$17.5 billion) in financial support for Hitachi.365
In June 2018, the Government formally announced that it was considering taking an equity
stake in the Wylfa project, with a suggestion that the Government share could be up to
one‑third of the project costs and would provide all the loans needed for the project. The
other two-thirds were to be taken up by Hitachi and by Japanese investors identified by theJapanese government. This highlighted the extent to which the Government, despite previous
statements to the contrary, recognized that, as The Times puts it, “nuclear power in reality
seems to be untenable without it [state support].”366 The Government seemed to hope thatby directly investing into the project, it would drive the strike price down to £70–78/MWh(US$92–103 MWh).367 Subsequently Energy Minister Greg Clark said a strike price above £75/
MWh (US$96.5/MWh) could not be justified for new nuclear.368
In January 2019, Hitachi announced that it was suspending the project and that this decision
was taken “from the standpoint of economic rationality”; in doing so the company accepteda ¥300 billion (US$2.75 billion) impairment. Hitachi pointed to “significant changes in the
power market environment,” including the competitiveness of renewable energies.369
The partners and potential partners for the NuGen and Horizon projects will face an uphill battle
to get a level of CfD similar to that was awarded to EDF for Hinkley Point C. Criticism of the highsupport cost for Hinkley and other nuclear projects has intensified with the awarding of tenders
for offshore wind, with 2017 support prices of £57.50–74.75 in 2012 money (US$80–101/MWh) in
2017.370 The next round of CfD announcements for offshore wind is expected in late 2019.

A New Funding Model for Nuclear?
In July 2019, the Government announced a consultation for the introduction of a new funding
model to facilitate the construction of new nuclear via a Regulated Asset Base (RAB), which“in the case of a nuclear RAB, suppliers would be charged as users of the electricity system and364 - Chartered Institute of Building, “Hitachi gets cold feet over UK’s $27bn nuclear scheme”, Global Construction Review,
30 April 2018, see http://www.globalconstructionreview.com/news/hitachi-gets-cold-feet-over-uks-27bn-nuclear-schem/, accessed
8 May 2018.
365 - Sarah Dickins, “UK ‘set to finance’ Wylfa nuclear plant”, BBC News, 17 May 2018,see http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-44161097, accessed 18 May 2018.
366 - Robin Pagnamenta, “Pumping more money into nuclear power leaves nation at a loss”, 7 June 2018, see https://www.thetimes.
co.uk/article/pumping-more-money-into-nuclear-power-leaves-nation-at-a-loss-v2lr5ppw5, accessed 6 August 2019.
367 - Phil Chaffee, “UK Launches Formal Talks for Wylfa Equity Stake”, NIW, 8 June 2018.
368 - Greg Clark, “Statement at the House of Commons—Nuclear Update”, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial
Strategy, Hansard, 17 January 2019, see https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/2019-01-17/debates/9C841326-B63A-4790-867F905DEDDDD8AC/NuclearUpdate, accessed 10 June 2019.
369 - Dennis Engbarth, “Hitachi Cites ‘Economic Rationality’ for Wylfa Decision”, NIW, 1 January 2019.
370 - NIW, “Briefs—UK”, 15 September 2017.

| 116

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

would be able to pass these costs onto their consumers who also use the electricity system”.371
If approved by the Government, the project developer could charge consumers upfront for theconstruction, which would be broken down into different phases during the build process. EDF
have indicated that all households would have to pay £6 (US$7.5) per year additionally for themto build the proposed reactors at Sizewell C.372
Charging upfront reduces the construction costs as it avoids the need to include interest during
the construction phase, thus cutting the amount of compounded debt to be serviced and paid
off during the life of the asset, which could be key for nuclear projects as financing represent asignificant share of the overall construction costs. Furthermore, by breaking the construction
into different phases, it is expected that this would increase certainty and therefore reducethe cost of finance. It is argued by EDF that the aim would be to reduce the weighted [annual]
average cost of capital (WACC) from the 9.2 percent on Hinkley to close to 5.5–6 percent.373
For nuclear, the segmented RAB might include “initial costs of preparing to get started; thecosts of laying the foundations; the installation of the reactor; and commissioning—and ateach stage, with the costs agreed in advance, there would be scrutiny by the regulator andthen, subject to this efficiency test, these costs would then go into the RAB and be recoveredfrom the use of systems charges”.374
A key advantage selling point for the government is that it means that funding does not haveto come from the treasury—and therefore off the Government’s balance sheet—and thatit removes the need for or at least reduces the level of the Contract for Difference, whichhighlights the high cost of nuclear compared to all other generating sources.
However, this model is seen as transferring the financing risks to the customer, as the Financial
Times reported:
What RAB financing does is transfer project risks to customers, who are least well placed
to bear them,” said [the late] Martin Blaiklock, an infrastructure expert who likened thetechnique to “being forced to pay for a meal at a restaurant before the restaurant has evenbeen built, let alone served any food.375

The U.K. Government has asked for comments on the proposal until October 2019 and it willthen decide whether to approve this approach to project financing.

Renewables Kicking In
The constant decline in energy and electricity consumption in the U.K. does not favor the
economic case for nuclear new‑build. Meanwhile, renewables’ share of electricity generation
371 - Electricity and RAB Strategy Team, “Consultation on a Regulated Asset Base (RAB) Model for Nuclear”, Department for
Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, Open Consultation, 22 July 2019, see https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/regulatedasset-base-rab-model-for-nuclear, accessed 23 July 2019.
372 - Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy and UK Government, “Regulated Asset Base (RAB) model for nuclear”,
22 July 2019, see https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/regulated-asset-base-rab-model-for-nuclear, accessed 23 July 2019.
373 - Jonathan Ford, “EDF seeks to charge customers upfront for UK nuclear plants”, Financial Times, 22 November 2018,see https://www.ft.com/content/f9a96304-e980-11e8-885c-e64da4c0f981, accessed 23 July 2019.
374 - Dieter Helm, “The Nuclear RAB Model”, 12 June 2018, see http://www.dieterhelm.co.uk/energy/energy/the-nuclear-rab-model/,accessed 23 July 2019.
375 - Jonathan Ford, “EDF seeks to charge customers upfront for UK nuclear plants”, Financial Times, 22 November 2018.

| 117

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 reached 33 percent in 2018, largely outpacing nuclear power’s contribution of 17.7 percent.
The rise in renewables is increasingly impacting the other generators. In April 2019, National
Grid published a documentation on “Zero carbon operation 2025”, which makes no reference
to nuclear power and states “Our ambition is that, by 2025, we will have transformed theoperation of the electricity system such that we can operate it safely and securely at zerocarbon whenever there is sufficient renewable generation on‑line and available to meet the
total national load”.376Over the past decade the extraordinary cost of the U.K.’s proposed nuclear power program
has become apparent to a wider academic community and public bodies. Even when the
Government was willing to invest directly into the project, nuclear costs were prohibitive. Thisis perhaps most clearly demonstrated by the change in the views of the Committee on Climate
Change (CCC), an independent body established to advise the Government on meeting its
climate‑change objectives. In 2011, it stated that “nuclear power currently appears to be themost cost‑effective of the low-carbon technologies”.377 Yet in its June 2018 report, the CCC
says that “if new nuclear projects were not to come forward, it is likely that renewables would
be able to be deployed on shorter timescales and at lower cost”.378 Then in May 2019, in its
report on “Net Zero”, the CCC states that “cost reductions in low-carbon technologies is not auniversal story. Several technologies which have not been deployed at scale—such as nuclear
power, carbon capture and storage (CCS) and heat pumps—have failed to come down in cost”.
The Committee estimates that the cost of power in 2025 from solar PV could be £47/MWh(US$58/MWh), for wind £69/MWh (US$48/MWh) and nuclear £98/MWh (US$123/MWh).379

Plutonium – From Long-Term Resource Dream to Endless Liability
The reprocessing of spent fuel, the use of plutonium and the re-use of reprocessed uranium
were at the heart of the U.K.’s nuclear industry from inception. Initially this was for military
reasons, as the plutonium was for weapons, but then came the development of fast reactors, toenable a “closed fuel cycle”. However, the failure of the global deployment of nuclear power,
the rising costs and technical challenges of fast breeders and the availability of uranium
have undermined the justification of reprocessing. As of the start of 2017, the U.K. owned
over 110 tons of unirradiated separated plutonium, looking for a use.380 Consequently, thestart of the cessation of reprocessing at the Thermal Oxide Reprocessing Plant (THORP) in
November 2018, with the last fuel put into the plant,381 was an important development for the
nuclear industry, although it received surprising little press or political interest. While this376 - Julian Leslie, “Zero Carbon Operation 2025—Executive summary”, National Grid, April 2019,see https://www.nationalgrideso.com/document/141031/download, accessed 27 April 2019.
377 - CCC, “The Renewable Energy Review”, May 2011,see https://www.theccc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/The-renewable-energy-review_Printout.pdf, accessed 4 July 2018.
378 - CCC, “Reducing UK emissions—2018 Progress Report to Parliament”, June 2018,see https://www.theccc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/CCC-2018-Progress-Report-to-Parliament.pdf, accessed 4 July 2018.
379 - CCC, “Net Zero—The UK’s contribution to stopping global warming”, 2 May 2019,see https://www.theccc.org.uk/publication/net-zero-the-uks-contribution-to-stopping-global-warming/, accessed 11 July 2019.
380 - ONR, “Annual figures for holdings of civil unirradiated plutonium as at 31 December 2016”, 10 July 2017,see http://www.onr.org.uk/safeguards/civilplut16.htm, accessed 22 April 2019.
381 - Nuclear Decommissioning Authority and Sellafield Ltd, “End of reprocessing at Thorp signals new era for Sellafield”,
16 November 2018, see https://www.gov.uk/government/news/end-of-reprocessing-at-thorp-signals-new-era-for-sellafield, accessed
27 April 2019.

| 118

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 marks the end of an era for the industry, it is not the end of activities at the Sellafield plant,
which will be decommissioning the facility for decades to come and managing the plutonium
for at least centuries.

UNITED STATES
FOCUS
With 97 commercial reactors operating as of 1 July 2019, the U.S. possesses the largest nuclear
fleet in the world. Construction has continued on the one new nuclear plant in the U.S., thetwin AP‑1000 at Plant Vogtle‑3 and ‑4, following a vote of the owners in September 2018 tocontinue the project.382 Further cost increases have been reported but with reportedly an
improved work schedule.
Two reactors, both General Electric BWR MK 1 designs, were permanently closed in the year
to 1 July 2019. The Oyster Creek‑1 reactor in New Jersey generated its last kilowatthour on
17 September 2018.383 Connected to the grid in September 1969, it was the oldest operating
commercial reactor in the U.S., and was required to be closed no later than December 2018
under an agreement with the state.384 On 31 May 2019, Entergy permanently shut down its
Pilgrim reactor in Massachusetts, which was connected to the grid on 19 July 1972.
The fallout from the decision in July 2017385 to terminate construction of the twin V.C. Summer
AP‑1000 reactors continued through the past year. This included legal action over therecovery of billions of dollars of ratepayers’ money lost to the abandoned project,386 ongoingdisclosures of the failure of the project and culpability of utility executives,387 including
criminal investigations, and the takeover of the V.C. Summer owner, South Carolina Electric &Gas (SCG&E) and its parent SCANA, by Dominion.388
During the past year, utilities have both succeeded and failed in their ongoing efforts to securestate financial support for operating nuclear plants, with the balance being in the industry’sfavor. As of 2019, subsidies will be provided to eight nuclear plants in the U.S., in the form of
382 - U.S. Securities And Exchange Commission, “Form 8-K—Current Report—Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934”, Commission File Numbers 1‑3526 and 1‑6468, 26 September 2018,see https://d18rn0p25nwr6d.cloudfront.net/CIK-0000092122/4fc0aa9c-c108-4fe6-ad75-2057ebd606c1.pdf, accessed 2 May 2019.
383 - Exelon, “Oyster Creek Generating Station Retires from Service”, 17 September 2018,see https://www.exeloncorp.com/newsroom/oyster-creek-retires, accessed 10 May 2019.
384 - Wayne Parry, “Long held as oldest in US, New Jersey nuclear plant closes”, Associated Press, 17 September 2018,see https://www.apnews.com/916bbe07dab744edac460a50d5cad7f8, accessed 10 May 2019.
385 - SCANA, “South Carolina Electric & Gas Company To Cease Construction And Will File Plan Of Abandonment Of The New
Nuclear Project”, CISION PR Newswire, 31 July 2017, see https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/south-carolina-electric-gas-company-to-cease-construction-and-will-file-plan-of-abandonment-of-the-new-nuclear-project-300496644.html, accessed
10 May 2019.
386 - Andrew Brown, Thad Moore, “Q&A: What does SCE&G decision mean for ratepayers, investors and Dominion?”, The Post
And Courier, 14 December 2018, see https://www.postandcourier.com/business/q-a-what-does-sce-g-decision-mean-for-ratepayers/
article_5c483dc2-fe40-11e8-9495-a33c4842df79.html, accessed 10 May 2019.
387 - AP, “More former top SCE&G officials say bosses knew VC Summer would fail and lied to cover it up”, ABC Columbia,
20 November 2018, see https://www.abccolumbia.com/2018/11/20/more-former-top-sceg-officials-say-bosses-knew-vc-summer-wouldfail-and-lied-to-cover-it-up/, accessed 10 May 2019.
388 - Thad Moore, John McDermott, “Dominion officially owns SCANA, SCE&G, a year after offering to resolve SC nuclear fiasco”,
Post and Courier, 2 January 2019, see https://www.postandcourier.com/business/dominion-officially-owns-scana-sce-g-a-year-afteroffering/article_6e6ce794-0e96-11e9-a427-f39103ba4115.html, accessed 10 May 2019.

| 119

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 Zero Emission Credits (ZEC): Nine Mile Point, FitzPatrick and Ginna in New York; Clinton
and Quad Cities in Illinois; Salem and Hope Creek in New Jersey; and Palisades in Michigan.389
Legal challenges against ZEC nuclear legislation from consumers, NGOs and energy companies
are ongoing in all of these states.
The Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), the advocacy organization for the U.S. nuclear industry,has continued to lobby for financial support for nuclear plants,390 while the Departmentof Energy (DOE) provided a further loan guarantee of US$3.7 billion to Plant Vogtle
construction, the first and only loan guarantee issued under the Trump administration so
far.391 This brings the total loan guarantees provided by the DOE for nuclear new‑build projects
to US$12.03 billion.392
In a further measure to reduce costs for reactor operators, the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission’s (NRC) commissioners on 24 January 2019 voted by majority to remove safety
requirements proposed in a draft rule making issued in 2016, that, if applied, would haveforced utilities to take measures to upgrade their plants to protect against such hazards as
flooding and major seismic events.393 The draft NRC rulemaking had already rejected stricter
measures proposed by the “Near Term Taskforce Review of Insights from the Fukushima
Daiichi Accident” in 2011.394
While it is inevitable that the size of the U.S. nuclear fleet will continue to decline for theforeseeable future, the decline is likely to be slowed by directly subsidizing economicallythreatened operating plants.
The U.S. reactor fleet provided 808.03 TWh in 2018—a new historic maximum—compared with
805 TWh in 2017. Consequently, the load factor remained stable at a high level (89.8 percent),
significantly above the modest lifetime load factor of 75.9 percent. Nuclear plants provided
19.3 percent of U.S. electricity in 2018, compared with 20.1 percent of U.S. electricity in 2017,and about 3 percentage points below the highest nuclear share of 22.5 percent, reached in 1995.
With only one new reactor started up in 20 years, the U.S. reactor fleet continues to age, witha mid-2019 average of 38.9 years, amongst the oldest in the world: 46 units have operated for
41 years or more (see Figure 32).
389 - Geoffrey Haratyk, “Early Nuclear Retirements in Deregulated U.S. Markets: Causes, Implications and Policy Options”, Working
Paper Series, Center for Energy and Environmental Policy Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, March 2017,see https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/3723775/MIT-Early-Nuclear-Retirement-3-2017.pdf, accessed 10 May 2019.
390 - NEI, “Maria Korsnick Testifies on the Value of Nuclear in Pennsylvania”, NEI Testimony before the Pennsylvania House ofRepresentatives”, 15 April 2019, see https://www.nei.org/resources/testimony/korsnick-testifies-pennsylvania-nuclear, accessed
10 May 2019; and Maria Korsnick, “Testimony for the Record”, President and Chief Executive Officer, Nuclear Energy Institute,
Testimony to the Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, U.S. House of Representatives, 12 April 2019,see https://www.nei.org/CorporateSite/media/filefolder/resources/testimony/testimony-nei-korsnick-house-energy-waterappropriations-20190412.pdf, accessed 10 May 2019.
391 - Jacqueline Toth, “DOE Program’s $3.7 Billion Loan Highlights Lack of Action on Other $40 Billion It Holds”, Morning Consult,
8 April 2019, see https://morningconsult.com/2019/04/08/doe-programs-3-7-billion-loan-highlights-lack-of-action-on-other-40-billionit-holds/, accessed 10 May 2019.
392 - Taxpayers for Common Sense, “DOE Loan Guarantee Program: Vogtle Reactors 3 & 4”, 21 March 2019,see https://www.taxpayer.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/3-21-19-ENR-Vogtle-Fact-Sheet_MARCH-2019_-v.4.pdf, accessed 10 May 2019.
393 - Dave Flessner, “NRC backs away from strictest flood, seismic rules adopted after Fukushima”, Times Free Press, 25 January 2019,see https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/business/aroundregion/story/2019/jan/25/nrc-backs-away-strictest-flood-seismicrules/487429/, accessed 10 May 2019.
394 - Union of Concerned Scientists, “Preventing an American Fukushima—Limited Progress Five Years after Japan’s Nuclear Power
Plant Disaster”, March 2016, see https://www.ucsusa.org/sites/default/files/attach/2016/03/Preventing-American-Fukushima-full-report.pdf,
accessed 10 May 2019.

| 120

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 121

Figure 32 | Age Distribution of U.S. Nuclear Fleet

Age of US Nuclear Fleet
as of 1 July 2019

Reactor Age
43
46

7
1

97 Reactors
Mean Age
38.9 Years

0–10 Years
21–30 Years
31–40 Years
41 Years and Over
50 Number of Reactors
by Age Class© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

In the year to 1 July 2019, NRC issued 20‑year license renewals for four nuclear plants (fivereactors): Indian Point‑2 and ‑3395, River Bend‑1396, Waterford‑3397, and Seabrook‑1398. Utility
owners of two nuclear plants submitted applications for subsequent license renewal, which,if granted, could see the reactors operate for an additional 20 years beyond their current
sixty‑year license. Exelon Generation Company, LLC (Exelon), applied to the NRC on
10 July 2018 for subsequent license renewal for Peach Bottom‑2 and ‑3.399 These reactors, bothconnected to the grid in 1974, are General Electric MK1 BWRs.
The subsequent license request for Peach Bottom -2 and -3 is being contested by the organization
Beyond Nuclear. 400 In evidence seeking a review by the Atomic Safety Licensing Board (ASLB),
expert witness Dave Lochbaum contends that Exelon in its application to the NRC had failed toaddress how operating experience will be applied during the 60–80‑year period of operation of

395 - NRC, “Indian Point Nuclear Generating Unit Nos. 2 and 3 - License Renewal Application”, 17 September 2018,see https://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/indian-point.html#application, accessed 10 May 2019.
396 - NRC, “River Bend Nuclear Generating Station, Unit 1 – License Renewal Application”, 20 December 2018,see https://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/river-bend.html, accessed 10 May 2019.
397 - NRC, “Waterford Steam Electric Station, Unit 3 – License Renewal Application”, 27 December 2018,see https://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/waterford.html, accessed 10 May 2019.
398 - NRC, “Seabrook Station, Unit 1 – License Renewal Application”, 12 March 2019,see https://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/seabrook.html, accessed 10 May 2019.
399 - NRC, “Subsequent License Renewal Application: Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station Units 2 and 3— The Second License
Renewal Application”, Facility Operating License Nos. DPR‑44 and DPR‑56, 10 July 2018,see https://www.nrc.gov/docs/ML1819/ML18193A773.pdf, accessed 10 May 2019.
400 - NRC, “U.S.NRC Before The Atomic Safety And Licensing Board—In the Matter of Exelon Generation Company, LLC Peach
Bottom Atomic Power Station, Units 2 & 3—Beyond Nuclear, Inc.’s Amended Hearing Request And Petition To Intervene”, Docket
Nos. 50‑277/278 SLR, 1 May 2019, see https://www.nrc.gov/docs/ML1912/ML19121A453.pdf; and Lindsay C. VanAsdalan, “Activists
challenge license extension for Peach Bottom nuclear plant”, York Dispatch, 6 March 2019, see https://eu.yorkdispatch.com/story/
news/2019/03/05/activists-challenge-license-extension-peach-bottom-nuclear-plant/3060252002/, both accessed 12 July 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Peach Bottom‑2 and ‑3. This is despite the fact that “[a]bundant evidence also speaks to gaps,
deficiencies, and uncertainties in present understanding of aging degradation mechanisms.” 401
In October 2018, Dominion Energy Virginia submitted its Subsequent License Renewal
application for the Surry Power Station 1 and 2, which were connected to the grid in March 1972
and March 1973 respectively. 402 The NRC is now reviewing six reactors for 60–80‑year
operation, following the application for the Turkey Point‑3 and ‑4 reactors in May 2018. 403 The
NRC is planning to issue a final decision on the Turkey Point reactors in October 2019. 404 In
July 2017, the NRC published a final document describing “aging management programs” thatmight allow the NRC to grant nuclear power plants operating licenses for “up to 80 years”. 405
As of 1 July 2019, 89 of the 97 operating U.S. units had received a license extension. 406 However,experience shows that many reactors are closing long before their license expires.

Reactor Closures
On 17 September 2018, the oldest reactor in the U.S. fleet, the 650 MW Oyster Creek reactor
in New Jersey, entered permanent closure. Exelon, the owner of the 49‑year‑old BWR GE MK1
connected to the grid on 23 September 1969, had confirmed its intention for closure in
February 2018. 407 The safety of the reactor had long been under contention from a coalitionof NGOs, including evidence of severe corrosion of the reactor containment system that was
effectively ignored by the NRC during the reactor’s relicensing process in the mid-2000s. 408
The NRC issued 20‑year life extension approval for Oyster Creek in August 2009, granting thereactor operation until 2029.
In August 2015, Exelon had announced that Oyster Creek (together with Quad Cities and Three
Mile Island) had not cleared the Pennsylvania New Jersey Maryland Interconnection LLC (PJM)
capacity auction for the 2018–19 planning year. 409 Exelon announced on 31 July 2018 that Holtec
401 - David A. Lochbaum, “Proposed Subsequent License Renewal of Peach Bottom Units 2 and 3: Exelon’s Aging Management
Programs Fail to Provide Adequate Measures for Consideration of Operating Experience Throughout the Period of Extended
Operation”, Report prepared for Beyond Nuclear, 16 November 2018; attached to “Declaration of David A. Lochbaum—In the Matterof Exelon Generation Co., L.L.C., Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station, Units 2 & 3”, Docket Nos. 50‑277/278 SLR, U.S.NRC before
the Secretary, 16 November 2018, see http://static1.1.sqspcdn.com/static/f/356082/28029077/1542673242727/PB-SLR_11192018_
Attachments+to+Hearing+Request.pdf?token=6dfkmNSlZgmM33rZ%2Fx%2FV4Bp3%2FWk%3D, 12 July 2019.
402 - NRC, “Surry Power Station Units 1 and 2 Application for Subsequent License Renewal”, 15 October 2018,see https://www.nrc.gov/docs/ML1829/ML18291A828.pdf, accessed 10 May 2019.
403 - NRC, “South Texas Project, Units 1 and 2 – License Renewal Application”, Updated 28 September 2017,see https://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/south-texas-project.html, accessed 10 May 2019.
404 - NRC, “Turkey Point Nuclear Plant, Units 3 & 4 – Subsequent License Renewal Application”,
see https://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/turkey-point-subsequent.html, accessed 11 May 2019.
405 - Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, “Generic Aging Lessons Learned for Subsequent License Renewal (GALL-SLR) Report”,
U.S.NRC, Final Report, NUREG‑2191, Vol. 2, July 2017, see https://www.nrc.gov/docs/ML1718/ML17187A204.pdf, accessed 10 May 2019.
406 - NRC, “Status of Initial License Renewal Applications and Industry Initiatives”, Updated 13 March 2019,see https://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications.html, accessed 12 May 2019.
407 - Exelon Corporation, “Oyster Creek Generating Station Retires from Service”, 17 September 2018,see https://www.exeloncorp.com/newsroom/oyster-creek-retires, accessed 12 May 2019.
408 - Richard Webster, “Urgent - concern regarding current safety at Oyster Creek Nuclear Power”, Rutgers Environmental Law Clinic,
School of Law (Newark), Letter to the U.S.NRC on behalf of the citizen coalition Stop the Relicensing of Oyster Creek (STROC),
7 November 2006, Docket No. 50‑219-LR, see https://www.nrc.gov/docs/ML0631/ML063120572.pdf, accessed 12 May 2019.
409 - Exelon Corporation, “Exelon Announces Outcome of 2018-19 PJM Capacity Auction”, Business Wire, 24 August 2015,see http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20150824005330/en/Exelon-Announces-Outcome-2018-19-PJM-Capacity-Auction,accessed 12 May 2019.

| 122

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 International was interested in the purchase of the Oyster Creek reactor. 410 The NRC approved
the sale to Holtec on 20 June 2019. 411 As WNISR 2018 reported, this model of transferring
ownership was already adopted by the utility Entergy for its Zion plant in Illinois (withownership transferred to EnergySolutions). These developments are problematic as limitedliability companies are only financially liable—in the case of an accident or other legal dispute—up to the value of their assets. Therefore, if the decommissioning funds are exhausted, such athird-party company could declare bankruptcy, leaving the bill for the taxpayer. 412
On 31 May 2019, Entergy permanently closed its 47‑year old GE MK1 Pilgrim reactor. The
668 MW unit was connected to the grid on 19 July 1972. 413 Senator Ed Markey described theplant as having “one of the worst safety records of any nuclear facility in the country”. 414 The
reactor remained embroiled in safety concerns, not least after four emergency shutdowns(SCRAMs) between 2013–15. 415 Long-standing opponents of the plant had challenged Entergy’s
application for a 20‑year license extension, which was granted by the NRC in 2012, though
opposed by then NRC Chair Gregory Jazcko, and which permitted the reactor to operate until
2032. 416 Only three years after being granted lifetime extension, Entergy was facing mounting
costs, including for safety retrofits, which the utility was reluctant to invest in. Thesedifficulties, combined with loss of competitiveness in the electricity market, led Entergy in2015 to announce that Pilgrim was “simply no longer financially viable” and would be closed on
31 May 2019. 417
In November 2018, Entergy filed notice with the NRC for the sale of the Pilgrim reactor toHoltec International. Holtec would take ownership after closure, justified by the utility on the
grounds that Holtec would “complete decommissioning and site restoration decades sooner
than if Entergy completed decommissioning”. 418

410 - Exelon, “Holtec International to Purchase Oyster Creek Generating Station, Decommission Nuclear Plant within Eight Years”,
Press Release, 31 July 2018, see https://www.exeloncorp.com/newsroom/Documents/Press-Release-Holtec%20International%20
to%20Purchase%20Oyster%20Creek%20Generating%20Station,%20Decommission%20Nuclear%20Plant%20within%20_3846.
pdf#search=holtec, accessed 12 May 2019.
411 - Holtec International, “NRC Approves Oyster Creek License Transfer to Holtec for Decommissioning”, 20 June 2019,see https://holtecinternational.com/2019/06/20/nrc-approves-oyster-creek-license-transfer-to-holtec-for-decommissioning/, accessed
12 July 2019.
412 - D. Schlissel, et. al., “Financial Insecurity: The Increasing Use of Limited Liability Companies and Multi-Tiered Holding
Companies to Own Nuclear Power Plants”, STAR Foundation Riverkeeper, 2002.
413 - Entergy, “Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station Shut Down Permanently”, 31 May 2019,see https://www.entergynewsroom.com/news/pilgrim-nuclear-power-station-shut-down-permanently/, accessed 1 June 2019.
414 - Kathryn Miles, “Pilgrim nuclear plant due to close in two years, but safety concerns linger”, Boston Globe, 25 August 2017,see https://www.bostonglobe.com/magazine/2017/08/22/pilgrim-nuclear-plant-due-close-two-years-but-safety-concerns-linger/
JB5u9wtKekShHNgHKQ0uxO/story.html, accessed 12 May 2019.
415 - Ibidem.
416 - Entergy, “Entergy’s Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station Gets New 20-Year License NRC Finds Plant Safe; Renewal Preserves 650 Jobs,$135 million in Economic Impact”, 25 May 2012, see http://www.pilgrimpower.com/newsroom/press-releases/Entergy-s-PilgrimNuclear-Power-Station-Gets-New-20-Year-License.html, accessed 12 May 2019.
417 - Jim Ostroff, William Freebairn, “Entergy to shut Pilgrim nuclear power plant as early as 2017”, S&P Global, Platts,
13 October 2015, see https://www.platts.ru/latest-news/electric-power/washington/entergy-to-shut-pilgrim-nuclear-power-plantas-21284265, accessed 12 May 2019. For comprehensive history of the Pilgrim reactor, safety issues and citizens interventions over the
decades see Mary Lampert, “Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station Plymouth, Massachusetts—Citizen Handbook”, Director, Pilgrim Watch,see http://pilgrimwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/PilgrimHandbook20181106.pdf, accessed 12 May 2019.
418 - Entergy, “Holtec Files Request to Acquire Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station by End of 2019, Complete Decommissioning Decades
Sooner than Entergy”, 16 November 2018, see http://www.pilgrimpower.com/holtec-files-request-to-acquire-pilgrim-nuclear-powerstation-by-end-of-2019-complete-decommissioning-decades-sooner-than-entergy/, accessed 12 May 2019.

| 123

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 124

Exelon Generation announced on 8 May 2019 that Three Mile Island‑1 (TMI) will
permanently close by 30 September 2019. 419 The 45year old reactor was connected to the gridon 19 June 1974. In 2009, the NRC granted a 20‑year license extension to operate until 2034. In
August 2015, TMI did not clear the PJM capacity auction for the 2018–19 planning year, 420 andExelon warned in 2017 that failure to approve subsidies by the Pennsylvania legislature before
1 June 2019 would lead to the reactor’s closure. 421 As of 1 July 2019, no such legislation had been
passed (see section on Zero Emission Credits (ZECs) hereunder). The decision to finally close
nuclear operations at the power plant site came 40 years after TMI‑2 suffered a partial corefuel meltdown on 28 March 1979. (See Table 8 and Figure 33).
Figure 33 | Timelines of Early Retirement in the United States

Timelines of 18 U.S. Reactors Subject to Early-Retirement 2009–2025
as of 1 July 2019
Closed Units
Crystal River-3*
San Onofre-2
San Onofre-3
Kewaunee
Vermont Yankee
Fort Calhoun-1
Oyster Creek
Pilgrim-1
Units Scheduled for Closure
Three Mile Island-1
Davis Besse-1
Indian Point-2
Beaver Valley-1
Beaver Valley-2
Perry-1
Indian Point-3
Palisades
Diablo Canyon-1
Diablo Canyon-2
15Construction

10

Operation

2009
2012
2012
2013
2014
2016
2018
2019
2019
2020
2020
2021
2021
2021
2021
2022
2024
2025

0
Expected
Remaining
Operation

10

20

30

40

70

80

50

60

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

License Renewal Date of Closure
or Expected Closure

Early Closure Potentially Reversed
License Renewal Withdrawn

Sources: Various, compiled by WNISR, 2019419 - Exelon Generation, “Three Mile Island Unit 1 To Shut Down By September 30, 2019”, Press Release, 8 May 2019,see https://www.exeloncorp.com/newsroom/Pages/Three-Mile-Island-Unit-1-To-Shut-Down-By-September-30,-2019.aspx,
accessed 13 May 2019.
420 - Sonal Patel, “Two Exelon Nuclear Plants Fail to Clear PJM Auction”, POWER, 25 May 2016,see http://www.powermag.com/two-exelon-nuclear-plants-fail-to-clear-pjm-auction/, accessed 23 May 2017.
421 - Michael Brooks, “Exelon to Close Three Mile Island”, RTO Insider, 10 May 2019, see https://rtoinsider.com/exelon-to-closethree-mile-island-115980/; and Jacey Fortin, “Three Mile Island Nuclear Power Plant Is Shutting Down”, New York Times, 8 May 2019,see https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/08/us/three-mile-island-shut-down.html, both accessed 28 May 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 125

Table 8 | Early-Retirements for U.S. Reactors 2009-2025

Reactor

Owner

Decision Date

Closure/Expected
Closure Date
(last electricity
generation)

Age at Closure(in years)

NRC 60-Year License
Approval

Oyster Creek

Exelon8 December 2010

December 2019 brought
forward to 17 September
2018

49

Yes

Crystal River-3

Duke Energy

5 February 2013

26 September 200932

Application withdrawn

San Onofre-2 & -3

SCE/SDG&E

7 June 2013

January 201229 / 28

No application

Kewaunee

Dominion Energy

22 October 2012

7 May 2013

39

Yes

Vermont Yankee

Entergy

28 August 201329 December 2014

42

Yes

PilgrimEntergy

13 October 2015

31 May 2019

47

Yes

Diablo Canyon -1 & -2

PG&E

21 June 2016

November 2024 & August
2025

40

Suspended

Fort Calhoun

OPPD

26 August 2016

24 October 2016

43

Yes

PalisadesEntergy

8 December 2016/
28 September 2017

2022

51

Yes

Indian Point-2 & -3

Entergy

9 January 2017

No later than 30 April
2020 / 30 April 2021

47 / 44

Yes

Three Mile Island-1

Exelon30 May 2017

September 2019

45

Yes

Beaver Valley-1 & -2

First Energy

March 2018

2021a

45/34

Yes

Davis Besse-1

First Energy

March 2018

2020a

43

Yes

Perry

First Energy

March 2018

2021a

35.5

Cancelledb

Sources: Various, compiled by WNISR, 2019

Notes
a - Early closure potentially reversed – see Table 9.

b – According to the NRC, FENOC indicated that with the planned closure of Perry they no longer plan to submit a license renewal application 422 .
SCE: Southern California Edison; SDG&E: San Diego Gas & Electric; PG&E: Pacific Gas & Electric Company; OPPD: Omaha Public Power District

422 - NRC, “Status of Initial License Renewal Applications and Industry Initiatives”, Updated 13 March 2019,see https://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications.html, accessed 27 August 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 126

New Reactor Construction“If we were deciding today,
I don’t think we would decide to build these units (at Plant Vogtle)
because natural gas and solar are so cheap today.”Tim Echols
Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC)
who voted for completing the Vogtle project in May 2019.423

The cancellation of the V.C. Summer reactors means that the only new nuclear plant
construction in the United States is Plant Vogtle in Georgia. Construction of Vogtle‑3 officiallybegan in March 2013, with Unit 4 following in November 2013. 424 The original project cost
approved by the Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) was US$6.1 billion in 2009, whichcorresponds to a cost of US$2,350/kW, whereas the 2017 cost estimates of US$23 billion
translates to a cost of US$10,000/kW. The revised 2018 estimates in the range of US$28 billion
have increased costs to US$11,000/kW. 425 These costs compare with the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology (MIT) 2009 assessment of the prospects for new nuclear power
based on overnight costs of US$20074,000/kW426 (US$20184,800). During the past year, further
cost increases have been reported. There are differing opinions on completion schedules
with the utility expressing confidence that it can meet target dates of November 2021 andNovember 2022 for Units 3 and 4 respectively. Critics of the Vogtle project had long predicted
over the past decade that costs would be much higher, as now confirmed. 427
As WNISR2018 reported, on 31 August 2017 Southern Company (parent company of majority
Vogtle plant owner, Georgia Power) filed its recommendation with the Georgia PSC to continue
construction of Vogtle—supported by its other owners Oglethorpe Power Corporation (OPC),
Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia (MEAG) and Dalton Utilities. 428 In addition tocontinuation of the project, Georgia Power reported that it had also reviewed the options ofcancellation of Unit 4, as well as cancellation of both units. The recommendation was basedon the results of a comprehensive schedule, cost‑to‑complete and cancellation assessment,
according to Southern Company. The President of Georgia Power stated that “Completing the423 - Dave Fessler, “Solar power gets cheaper, more popular in Georgia”, Times Free Press, 21 May 2019,see https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/breakingnews/story/2019/may/21/solar-power-gets-cheaper-more-popular-georgia/495053/,
accessed 28 May 2019.
424 - WNISR, “Construction Start on US Vogtle Unit 4”, 25 November 2013,see https://www.worldnuclearreport.org/Construction-Start-on-US-Vogtle.html, accessed 28 May 2019.
425 - Liam Denning, “Nuclear Power’s Big Problem Isn’t That It’s Nuclear”, Bloomberg, 27 September 2018,see https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2018-09-27/nuclear-power-s-big-problem-isn-t-that-it-s-nuclear, accessed 28 May 2019.
426 - John M. Deutch, Charles W. Forsberg, et al., “Update of the MIT 2003 Future of Nuclear Power”, MIT Energy Initiative,
Interdisciplinary Study, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2009, see http://web.mit.edu/nuclearpower/pdf/nuclearpowerupdate2009.pdf, accessed 5 August 2019.
427 - For example, see Michael Marriotte,“MIT Nuke Study Uses Unsupportable Reactor Cost Estimates”, Nuclear Information andResource Service, 16 September 2010, see https://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2010/09/16/mit-nuke-study-uses-unsupportablereactor-cost-estimates, accessed 23 May 2018; and Travis Madsen et al., “The High Cost of Nuclear Power—Why America Should
Choose a Clean Energy Future Over New Nuclear Reactors”, Maryland PIRG Foundation, March 2009,see https://www.nirs.org/wp-content/uploads/nukerelapse/calvert/highcostnpower_mdpirg.pdf, accessed 28 May 2019.
428 - Southern Company, “Southern Company subsidiary Georgia Power files recommendation to complete construction of Vogtle
nuclear expansion”, Press Release, 31 August 2017, see https://www.southerncompany.com/newsroom/2017/aug-2017/georgia-powervogtle-recommendation.html, accessed 28 May 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Vogtle‑3 & 4 expansion will enable us to continue delivering clean, safe, affordable and reliableenergy to millions of Georgians, both today and in the future”. 429
As WNISR2018 also reported, in December 2017 the Georgia PSC, following therecommendation from Southern Company, decided to continue to support the project. The
Georgia PSC has backed the Plant Vogtle project from the start, including awarding thegenerous Construction Work In Progress (CWIP), where all construction costs incurred by
Georgia Power are passed directly on to the customer. The Georgia Nuclear Energy Financing
Act, signed into law in 2009, allows regulated utilities to recover from their customers thefinancing costs associated with the construction of nuclear generation projects—years
before those projects are scheduled to begin producing benefits for ratepayers. As a result of
the CWIP legislation, out of Georgia Power’s original estimated US$6.1 billion Vogtle costs,
US$1.7 billion is financing costs recoverable from the ratepayer. The utility began recovering
these financing costs from its customers starting in 2011. For that first year, the rule translates
to Georgia Power electric bills’ rising by an average of US$3.73 per month. Georgia Powerestimated that this monthly charge would escalate so that by 2018, a Georgia Power residential
customer using 1,000 kWh per month would have seen his/her bill go up by US$10 per monthdue to Vogtle‑3 and ‑4. As a result of increased costs of the project and approval by the PSC,
ratepayers had already paid US$2 billion to Georgia Power as of November 2017. 430 But given thelong timescale of the project, including planned operational life, the actual costs to ratepayers
will be much higher. In December 2017, under cross‑examination from Georgia Watch, apublic interest group, Georgia PSC staff had confirmed that “the nominal life cycle capital
cost revenue requirement collected from ratepayers would increase from US$23 billion to
US$37 billion...” Georgia Watch’s Liz Coyle concluded that “if the Commission adopts theCompany’s recommendations as filed, the Company profits will increase by 5.2 billion dollars
and ratepayers will pay an additional 14 billion dollars.”431
In early August 2018, Southern Company reported that it had revised its own expenditure forthe project from US$7.3 billion to US$8.4 billion, stating that the increase would be absorbedby the company (i.e. its shareholders), not by customers. 432
As to the construction schedule, in 2017, officially Southern Company gave fuel-loading times
as November 2021 for Unit 3 and November 2022 for Unit 4, which compares with an originalplanned startup date of 2016. However, the operational dates from Southern are at variancewith the assessment made by the Georgia PSC in its December 2016 quarterly progress report,
which indicated a credible completion date of 2023. Obtained by E&E News433—one public
version, the other classified as “Highly Confidential Trade Secret EPC Information”—the429 - Ibidem.
430 - Southern Environmental Law Center, “Groups Intervene in Vogtle Cost Proceedings—Georgians Should Not Bear Financial
Burden of Georgia Power’s Project Mismanagement”, Press Release, 6 November 2017, see https://www.southernenvironment.org/
news-and-press/press-releases/groups-intervene-in-vogtle-cost-proceedings-georgians-should-not-bear-finan, accessed 28 May 2019.
431 - Gloria Tatum, “Ratepayers, Experts Urge PSC to Cancel Vogtle Nuclear Reactors 3 and 4 (Update 1)”, Atlanta Progressive News, as
published online by Georgia Watch, 19 December 2017, see http://www.georgiawatch.org/ratepayers-experts-urge-psc-to-cancel-vogtlenuclear-reactors-3-and-4-update-1/, accessed 28 May 2019.
432 - Anastaciah Ondieki, “Vogtle costs to go up by $1.1 billion, Georgia Power says”, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 8 August 2018,see https://www.ajc.com/business/economy/vogtle-costs-billion-georgia-power-says/UABAtyEgT0N58ObAgdro8K/, accessed
28 May 2019.
433 - Kristi E. Schwartz, “Evidence mounts that Vogtle project won’t start up in 2020”, E&E News, 8 February 2017,see https://www.eenews.net/energywire/2017/02/08/stories/1060049693, accessed 28 May 2019.

| 127

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

report cast major doubts on the company’s estimated completion dates of the Vogtle reactors,
with future long-term activities identified by “staff as high risk for delay.” Although bothversions of the report were heavily redacted, it confirmed that “there have been continued
delays” and “that all of the paths to Unit 3 completion are under schedule stress and will likely
incur additional delays.”434 The 2023 date itself was highly speculative, and was on the basisof maintaining the 2016 nine‑percent annual construction completion‑rate, with no further
delays, which given the track record of the project must be in serious doubt.
During the past year, Southern Company reported that the completion schedule was on track.
On 20 February 2019, Southern Company’s CEO Tom Fanning said that “a lot of work ahead of
us to sustain this performance, but we are pleased with our progress and are confident that we
can meet the schedule approved by regulators.”435 The optimism of the utility contrasts with
continuing warnings from Georgia PSC staff. In their November 2018 report to the Georgia PSC,
which was an analysis of the “Nineteenth Semi-Annual Vogtle Construction Monitoring
Report”, they questioned both the credibility of the construction schedule and the risk offurther cost increases, noting that “the +21-month schedule is highly unlikely to be achieved”
and even the “+29-month schedule is also stressed.”436 In terms of costs, the Georgia PSC staff
noted that at “the monthly spending rate, currently $200 million per month (100 %) on the
Project, the cost consequences of Project delay could be severe depending on the duration of
the delay.” Staff concluded that “at this time the status of the Project is uncertain,”437 withmajor uncertainties whether the target date of Hot Functional Tests scheduled for Unit 3 on
31 March 2020 can be achieved. Fuel loading is scheduled for 14 October 2020.
According to a media write-up, 438 during December 2018 hearings on the latest assessment fromSouthern, expert testimony warned that the cost to ratepayers will be nearly “US$4 billion in
financing costs and income tax expenses upon completion. That figure is likely to increase andaffect ratepayers who have financed the project since construction began in 2011”; with experts
warning that “a delay of more than eight months may deem the project, now about 71 percent
complete, ‘uneconomic to continue.’”439
At the February 2019 session of the Georgia PSC, regulators approved a further US$526.4 million
in costs for the Vogtle plant to be paid for by Georgia ratepayers. 440
As reported in WNISR2018, on 13 February 2018 a coalition of groups filed in Fulton County
Superior Court a complaint challenging the Georgia PSC decision, declaring that it was
434 - Georgia PSC, “Vogtle 3 and 4 Nuclear Project Monthly Report—Public Disclosure”, December 2016,see https://www.eenews.net/assets/2017/02/08/document_ew_02.pdf, accessed 28 May 2019.
435 - NW, “Vogtle expansion project productivity increases, executives say”, 28 February 2019.
436 - Georgia PSC, “Public Disclosure—Direct Testimony And Exhibits Of Steven D. Roetger and William R. Jacobs, Jr.,
PhD.—On Behalf Of The Georgia Public Service Commission Public Interest Advocacy Staff—In The Matter Of Georgia Power
Company’s Nineteenth Semi-Annual Vogtle Construction Monitoring Report”, Testimony Before The Georgia Public Service
Commission, Docket No. 29849, 30 November 2018, see https://coschedule.s3.amazonaws.com/88545/0065fd85-52df-4714-916c88da7d3bcfca/29849%2019VCM%20Roetger-Jacobs-PD.PDF, accessed 28 May 2019.
437 - Ibidem.
438 - Anastaciah Ondieki, “PSC staff concerned more project delays ahead for Vogtle nuclear plant”, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution,
23 December 2018, see https://www.ajc.com/business/economy/psc-staff-concerned-more-project-delays-ahead-for-vogtle-nuclearplant/jrKjH9KmdOseU1zEqaKrmI/, accessed 28 May 2019.
439 - Ibidem.
440 - Darrell Proctor, “Georgia PSC Backs Additional Costs for Vogtle Nuclear Project”, POWER, 19 February 2019,see https://www.powermag.com/georgia-psc-backs-additional-costs-for-vogtle-nuclear-project/, accessed 12 July 2019.

| 128

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

unlawful, violating the PSC’s own guidelines and Georgia state law. 441 The coalition contended
that new investments in solar power and energy efficiency would be less risky, more affordable,
and more than up to the job of powering Georgia’s economy. On 21 December 2018, the court
found that dissatisfied customers cannot raise concerns about the unfairness of Goergia PSC
process “until 2022 or later, after the project is complete.”442 “The court dismissed the appeal
on technical grounds without addressing its substance,” attorney Kurt Ebersbach of Southern
Environmental Law Center (SELC) stated. 443 “The people of Georgia have been pre-paying forthis mismanaged project since 2011, while the price tag has ballooned and the project timeline
has slipped again and again,” Liz Coyle, executive director of Georgia Watch, said. “Unlessthe court reverses the commission’s decision, Georgia Power customers remain exposed
to significant financial risk with seemingly no end in sight.”444 The groups are planning tochallenge the court decision.
Under the financing terms agreed with the Georgia PSC, the longer the Vogtle plant takes toconstruct, the higher its costs, which have invariably been passed on to Georgia ratepayers,
resulting in higher income streams for Georgia Power and therefore Southern. In reporting2018 Southern earnings, CEO Thomas A. Fanning stated that, “2018 was a banner year forSouthern Company (...) All of our state‑regulated electric and gas companies delivered strong
performance.” Full‑year 2018 earnings were US$2.23 billion, compared with earnings of
US$842 million in 2017. 445
The Vogtle plant construction has faced ongoing legal challenges since approval for
construction in 2009. On 19 February 2019, the Fulton County Superior Court in Georgia
granted class‑action status to a lawsuit challenging charges Georgia Power Co. collects from
customers each month related to Vogtle construction. The lawsuit, originally filed in 2011, 446
charges Georgia Power with artificially raising municipal franchisee fees. “This is a good day
for electric power customers in Georgia. For the first time in over seven years, a court has
authorized plaintiffs to move forward as a group representing all two million‑plus ratepayers”,
said the plaintiffs’ lawyer and former speaker of the state House of Representatives,
Glenn Richardson. 447
In a separate lawsuit, on 18 June 2019, the Georgia Court of Appeals heard arguments about
whether the 2017 Georgia PSC decision to continue the construction of Vogtle broke regulatory

441 - Dave Williams, “Plant Vogtle opponents appeal vote to complete nuclear project”, Atlanta Business Chronicle, 12 February 2018,see https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2018/02/12/plant-vogtle-opponents-appeal-vote-to-complete.html, accessed
28 May 2019.
442 - Albany Herald, “Groups Challenge Court Decision Regarding Plant Vogtle Over Cost Concerns”, as published by Georgia Watch,
10 January 2019, see https://www.georgiawatch.org/groups-challenge-court-decision-regarding-plant-vogtle-over-cost-concerns/,
accessed 28 May 2019.
443 - Ibidem. The coalition consists of Partnership for Southern Equity, Georgia Interfaith Power and Light, and Georgia Watch.
444 - Ibidem.
445 - Southern Company, “Southern Company reports fourth-quarter and full-year 2018 earnings”, PR Newswire, 20 February 2019,see https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/southern-company-reports-fourth-quarter-and-full-year-2018-earnings-300798574.
html, accessed 28 May 2019.
446 - Kristi E. Swartz, “Lawsuit challenging sales tax on Georgia Power’s nuclear fee to move forward”, The Atlanta JournalConstitution, 29 March 2012, see https://www.ajc.com/business/lawsuit-challenging-sales-tax-georgia-power-nuclear-fee-movefoward/ehbVuRgOy7SJgYM5uWnsIO/, accessed 12 July 2019.
447 - Dave Williams, “Lawsuit aimed at Plant Vogtle charges gains class-action status”, Atlanta Business Chronicle, 19 February 2019,see https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2019/02/19/lawsuit-aimed-at-plant-vogtle-gains-class-action.html, accessed 12 July 2019.

| 129

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 rules. 448 The coalition of citizens’ organizations challenging the Georgia PSC, including
Georgia Watch and Georgia Interfaith Power and Light, filed the appeal after their case wasdismissed on technical grounds in December 2018. 449 They contend that the 2017 decision
approving the completion of the Vogtle reactors should have been subject to judicial review. 450
Under Georgia PSC guidelines, commissioners are not required to judge whether costs are
prudent until after the plant is complete, when retroactive prudency hearings are held. Only
then advocates are allowed to challenge expenses. As the lawyer representing the plaintiffs
states, “And that’s their [Georgia Power’s] argument: ‘Wait until we build it.’ But if you wait
‘til you build it, you can’t go back and say, was it right to continue? It’s moot at that point.
They’re taking away one of the powerful arguments to hold the company accountable, which iswhether or not the additional expenses are reasonable. And that matters. Because it shifts theburden of proof.”451 Georgia Power’s attorney stated that “It’s not a question of whether they
can seek judicial review. It’s a question of when.”452 A decision by the court is expected by theend of 2019.

Vogtle Federal Loan Guarantees
Under the terms of the Department of Energy (DOE) Loan Guarantee Program, owners of
nuclear projects are able to borrow at below‑market Federal Financing Bank rates with therepayment assurance of the U.S. Government. DOE loan guarantees permitted Vogtle’s owners
to finance a substantial portion of their construction costs at interest rates well below market
rates, and to increase their debt fraction, which significantly reduced overall financing costs.
In justification for the loan guarantee to Vogtle, the Obama administration stated in 2010 that
the Vogtle project represents an important advance in nuclear technology, other innovative
nuclear projects may be unable to obtain full commercial financing due to the perceived
risks associated with technology that has never been deployed at commercial scale in the
U.S. The loan guarantees from this draft solicitation would support advanced nuclear energy
technologies that will catalyze the deployment of future projects that replicate or extend atechnological innovation. 453

The loan guarantee program has therefore played a critical role in permitting the Vogtle project
to proceed but has failed to catalyze a nuclear revival, with no prospects of further new nuclear
plants being built in the U.S. in the coming decades. Oglethorpe Power Corporation (OPC),
which has a 30 percent stake in Vogtle, confirmed in August 2017 that it had submitted arequest to DOE for up to US$1.6 billion in additional loan guarantees. The company alreadyhad a US$3 billion loan guarantee from DOE. The other owners, Georgia Power and Municipal
448 - Emma Hurt, “Appeals Court Hears Argument On Nuclear Plant Decision”, WABE, 18 June 2019,see https://www.wabe.org/appeals-court-hears-argument-on-nuclear-plant-decision/, accessed 12 July 2019.
449 - Fulton County Superior Court, “Georgia Interfaith Power & Light et al v. Georgia Public Service Commission, et al.—Civil Action
File No. 2018CV301128”, and “Georgia Watch v. Georgia Public Service Commission, et al.—Civil Action File No. 2018CV302152”,
9 January 2019, see https://www.georgiawatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Notice-of-Appeal-Fulton-Co-Sup-Ct-1.pdf, accessed
12 July 2019.
450 - Mycle Schneider, Antony Froggatt, et al., “WNISR2018”, 4 September 2018.
451 - Emma Hurt, “Appeals Court Hears Argument On Nuclear Plant Decision”, WABE, 18 June 2019.
452 - Ibidem.
453 - Peter W. Davidson, “Fostering the Next Generation of Nuclear Energy Technology—Investing in American Energy”, Loan
Programs Office, U.S.DOE, 29 September 2014, see https://energy.gov/lpo/articles/fostering-next-generation-nuclear-energytechnology, accessed 28 May 2019.

| 130

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 Electric Authority of Georgia (MEAG), have secured US$8.3 billion in separate loan guarantees
from DOE since 2010, when they were approved by the Obama administration. Both of thesecompanies confirmed in August 2017 that they were seeking additional loan guarantee funding.
On 29 September 2017, DOE Secretary Perry announced approval of additional US$3.7 billion
loan guarantees for the Vogtle owners, with US$1.67 billion to Georgia Power, US$1.6 billion to
OPC, and US$415 million to MEAG. 454 A decision on terminating the Vogtle project would raise
the prospect of repayment of the previous US$8.3 billion loan to Southern. 455
In April 2019, the DOE provided a further loan guarantee of US$3.7 billion to Plant Vogtle
construction, only the second loan guarantee issued under the Trump administration and thesecond to Plant Vogtle. 456 This brings the total loan guarantees provided for the Vogtle projectby the DOE to US$12.03 billion. 457

Ongoing Fallout from Termination of V.C. Summer Project
As in WNISR2018, the decision on 31 July 2017 by Santee Cooper and SCANA Corporation (theparent company of South Carolina Electric & Gas or SCG&E) to terminate construction of theV. C. Summer project during the past year has seen ongoing financial and legal fallout for thecompanies and ratepayers of South Carolina.
On 24 November 2018, SCANA and SCG&E agreed to a US$2 billion settlement to resolve
a ratepayer lawsuit over cost recovery for the abandoned V.C. Summer nuclear expansion
project. 458 Under the controversial Base Load Review Act (where ratepayers pay during theconstruction period) there had been nine rate increases that to date have cost ratepayers
US$2 billion. Under the agreement, approved by the Georgia PSC on 14 December 2018,
while there was to be a reduction of 15 percent in electricity prices, South Carolina’s citizens
will continue to pay towards the abandoned project for an additional US$2.26 billion overthe next 20 years. 459 The decision of Georgia PSC was part of an overall settlement whereby
SCANA would be taken over by Dominion Energy; the utility had threatened to walk awayfrom its SCANA takeover if the Georgia PSC were to approve higher rate cuts. 460 Critics ofthe agreement estimated that total costs to ratepayers will amount to US$5 billion. 461 When454 - U.S.DOE, “Secretary Perry Announces Conditional Commitment to Support Continued Construction of Vogtle Advanced
Nuclear Energy Project”, 29 September 2017, see https://www.energy.gov/articles/secretary-perry-announces-conditionalcommitment-support-continued-construction-vogtle, accessed 28 May 2019.
455 - Peter Maloney, “Westinghouse bankruptcy puts $8.3B in federal loan guarantees for Vogtle plant at risk”, Utility Dive,
3 April 2017, see http://www.utilitydive.com/news/westinghouse-bankruptcy-puts-83b-in-federal-loan-guarantees-for-vogtle-pl/439508/,
accessed 28 May 2019.
456 - Jacqueline Toth, “DOE Program’s $3.7 Billion Loan Highlights Lack of Action on Other $40 Billion It Holds”, Morning Consult,
8 April 2019, see https://morningconsult.com/2019/04/08/doe-programs-3-7-billion-loan-highlights-lack-of-action-on-other-40-billionit-holds/, accessed 10 May 2019.
457 - Taxpayers for Common Sense, “DOE Loan Guarantee Program: Vogtle Reactors 3 & 4”, 21 March 2019,see https://www.taxpayer.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/3-21-19-ENR-Vogtle-Fact-Sheet_MARCH-2019_-v.4.pdf, accessed 10 May 2019.
458 - NW, “SCANA, SCE&G reach settlement on Summer project”, 29 November 2018.
459 - Tom Barton, “Dominion-SCANA merger mixed bag for ratepayers. What it means for SC power bills”, The State,
14 December 2018, see https://www.thestate.com/news/politics-government/article223058755.html, accessed 26 May 2019.
460 - Ibidem.
461 - Gwendolyn Glenn, “Consumer Advocate Calls SCANA Deal A ‘Bad Deal For Consumers’”, WFAE, 20 December 2018,see https://www.wfae.org/post/consumer-advocate-calls-scana-deal-bad-deal-consumers#stream/0, accessed 26 May 2019.

| 131

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 132

V.C. Summer was cancelled in 2017 total costs for completion of the two AP‑1000 reactors wasprojected to exceed US$25 billion—a 75 percent increase over initial estimates. 462
Meanwhile, legal action against SCANA continues in 2019, including a civil fraud lawsuit thatwill proceed to jury trial, 463 with a ratepayers’ lawyer telling the federal court judge: “Thebottom line is they (SCANA executives) lied to everyone, and they did it intentionally.”464 It is
known that since 2017 the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and the U.S. Attorney’s officeof South Carolina have been conducting an investigation into alleged criminal fraud by former
SCANA top officials. 465
The cancellation of the V.C. Summer project adds to the history of 40 other stranded nuclear
reactor projects in the United States whose construction started in the 1970s and which wereabandoned between 1977 and 1989, as can be seen from the WNISR’s Global Nuclear Power
Database. 466

Securing Subsidies to Prevent Closures“This is the only industry known where when you’re not doing well
you don’t go to shareholders and have them pay and suffer the losses,
you go to the ratepayers and make them pay.
This is a bailout for aging and obsolete technology.”
Ohio State Senator Sean O’Brien
May 2019 467

Utilities have been actively lobbying for state legislation and contracts that would provide
significant financial support for their reactor operations (for details see WNISR2018—Annex 4).
In addition to legislation that has been enacted in New York and Illinois, new policies havebeen implemented in Connecticut and New Jersey, while efforts are ongoing to secure funding
mechanisms continue in Pennsylvania and Ohio. Central to the future of nuclear power in thePennsylvania-New Jersey-Maryland Interconnection LLC (PJM) wholesale electricity market
are the rules expected to be proposed by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). 468
PJM is a Regional Transmission Organization (RTO) that coordinates the wholesale electricity
market in all or parts of Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey,
462 - Robert Walton, “SCANA agrees to settle $2B class action suit over nuclear costs”, Utility Dive, 26 November 2018,see https://www.utilitydive.com/news/scana-agrees-to-settle-2b-class-action-suit-over-nuclear-costs/542911/, accessed 26 May 2019.
463 - John Monk, “Former SCANA executives must face civil fraud charges in federal court, judge rules”, The Charlotte Observer,
1 April 2019, see https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/state/south-carolina/article228693009.html, accessed 27 May 2019.
464 - John Monk, “Lawyer: Ex-SCANA officials ‘whitewashed,’ lied about defects at failed nuclear plant”, The State, 4 March 2019,see https://www.thestate.com/news/local/crime/article227087214.html, accessed 27 May 2019.
465 - Russell Grantham, “Feds investigating Plant Vogtle nuke project’s twin in South Carolina”, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution,
21 September 2017, see https://www.ajc.com/business/feds-investigating-plant-vogtle-nuke-project-twin-south-carolina/
a7k2OsiAOiTeGrAqMCKAaN/, accessed 12 July 2019.
466 - WNISR/Visionscarto/Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, “Global Nuclear Power Database”, 2017,see http://thebulletin.org/global-nuclear-power-database, accessed 27 May 2019.
467 - 21 WFMJ, “House Bill 6 - clean air or multi-million dollar bailout paid by energy customers?”, 21 May 2019, see http://www.wfmj.
com/story/40506111/house-bill-6-clean-air-or-multi-million-dollar-bailout-paid-by-energy-customers, accessed 28 May 2019.
468 - The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC, is an independent agency that regulates the interstate transmission ofnatural gas, oil, and electricity. FERC also regulates natural gas and hydropower projects.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and the District ofColumbia. In June 2018, FERC invalidated the PJM market rules. 469 The FERC order relates to
how the PJM sets the price of capacity it procures through its capacity market, known as the
Reliability Pricing Model (RPM). As state subsidies, including Zero Emission Credits or ZECs,
have evolved from small‑scale renewables to thousands of megawatts from larger nuclear units,
FERC noted: “With each such subsidy, the market becomes less grounded in fundamental
principles of supply and demand.”470 The next PJM capacity market auction will take place inAugust 2019. 471 As of 1 July 2019 the rule changes from FERC have not been issued. They willaffect how state subsidies, including ZECs, will be considered in the wholesale market. At issue
is whether the subsidies being received by utilities for their nuclear plants will be factored into
the capacity auction pricing. The PJM stated that pending new rules from FERC it will hold theAugust auction under current rules. 472
As a result of securing financial support for reactors, it is likely that “early closures” of several
additional reactors will be cancelled (see Table 9).
In December 2018, Dominion secured approval to gain subsidies for its two reactors at
Millstone in Connecticut. Existing generating capacity in the state, such as the Millstone
plant, cannot be credited for its zero-carbon and other environmental attributes unless it isdesignated by state regulators as being at risk of early closure. Dominion applied for that status
for Millstone and received it in early December 2018. Prior to this approval, under the Low
and Zero Emissions Renewable Energy Credit Program only renewable energy was eligible.
Dominion threatened to close Millstone early unless recognized as a renewable source. In
December 2018, Dominion got state approval to purchase just over 50 percent of the Millstone
output over a period of ten years but without setting a contract price. The state had passed
in November 2017 legislation that secured just under 50 percent of Millstone’s output over aten‑year period.
Dominion in early 2019 continued to lobby over pricing473 and on 15 March 2019, Dominion
announced that it had reached agreement with state utilities and therefore would not beclosing the Millstone reactors. 474

469 - Sonal Patel, “FERC Nixes PJM’s Fixes for Capacity Market Besieged by Subsidized Resources”, POWER, 5 July 2018,see https://www.powermag.com/ferc-nixes-pjms-fixes-for-capacity-market-besieged-by-subsidized-resources/?printmode=1, accessed
30 May 2019.
470 - FERC, “Order Rejecting Proposed Tariff Revisions, Granting In Part And Denying In Part Complaint, And Instituting Proceeding
Under Section 206 Of The Federal Power Act”, Docket Nos. EL16‑49‑000, issued 29 June 2018,see https://www.ferc.gov/CalendarFiles/20180629212349-EL16-49-000.pdf, accessed 30 May 2019.
471 - Gavin Bade, “PJM won’t delay capacity market order despite FERC impasse over rule changes”, Utility Dive, 11 April 2019,see https://www.utilitydive.com/news/pjm-wont-delay-capacity-market-order-despite-ferc-impasse-over-rule-change/552530/, accessed
30 May 2019.
472 - Sonal Patel, “PJM Will Hold Capacity Auction Under Current Rules in August”, POWER, 10 April 2019,see https://www.powermag.com/pjm-will-hold-capacity-auction-under-current-rules-in-august/, accessed 30 May 2019.
473 - Darren Sweeney, “Dominion Energy says current contract for Millstone nuke not acceptable”, S&P, 1 February 2019,see https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/trending/-UEreLMB5A4Eb-60gtr2Ig2, accessed 29 May 2019.
474 - Darrel Proctor, “Dominion Reaches Deal to Keep Millstone Nuclear Plant Open”, POWER, 17 March 2019,see https://www.powermag.com/dominion-reaches-deal-to-keep-millstone-nuclear-plant-open/, accessed 29 May 2019.

| 133

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 134

Table 9 | U.S. State Emission Credits for Uneconomic Nuclear Reactors 2016–2019(as of 1 July 2019)
State

Illinois

ExelonPennsylvania

PlannedPermanent
Closure Date

Status ofPermanent
ClosurePlanning

Clinton-1

June 2017

Cancelled

Quad Cities-1 &- 2

June 2018

Cancelled

September 2019

Planned2021

Uncertain
Likely to becancelled

Legislature passed –April 2018 (reactors
with operating license
through 2030 only)

Utility

Reactors

ExelonTMIFirstEnergy

Beaver Valley-1 & -2

Legal Status

Illinois Future Energy
Jobs Act passed bylegislature – June 2016

US$16.50/MWh(US$200 million
a year)ZEC Upheldin Courta

Legislation not passed
as of 1 July 2019

N/A

N/A

US$300 million
a yearb

Legal challenge
filedcPSEG/Exelon

Salem-1 & -2

PSEG

Hope Creek

Threatenedby 2019

Likely to becancelled

Eligible

Dominion

Millstone-2 & -3

Threatened –no dateCancelled

Senate Zero Carbon
Procurement Act
approved by Governor
November 2017d

US$330 million
a yearN/A

ExelonFitzpatrickThreatened

Likely to becancelled

Ginna

Threatened

Likely to becancelled

Nine Mile Point-1

Threatened

US$482 million
2018–2019;
US$8 billion
2017–2029

N/A

Likely to becancelled

NYPSC Clean EnergyStandard ZEC passed
in 2016

Davis Besse

May 2020

Perry

May 2021

Legislation passed as of
27 July 2019

US$150 million per
year

N/A

New York
Entergy

Ohio

Value

Threatenedby 2019

New Jersey

Connecticut

Status of Emissions
Credit Legislation

FirstEnergy

To be cancellede

Sources: Various, compiled by WNISR, 2019

Notes

a - See Pamela King, “SUPREME COURT—The fight's not over yet on state nuclear credits”, E&ENews, 16 April 2019,see https://www.eenews.net/stories/1060166933, accessed 12 July 2019.
b - RTO Insiders, “NJ Approves $300M ZECs for Salem, Hope Creek Nukes”, 19 April 2019,see https://rtoinsider.com/nj-approves-zecs-nukes-114741/, accessed 15 July 2019.
c - ProPublica, “New Jersey’s $300 Million Nuclear Power Bailout Is Facing a Court Challenge. Does It Have a Chance?", 16 May 2019,see https://www.propublica.org/article/new-jerseys-300-million-nuclear-power-bailout-is-facing-a-court-challenge-does-it-have-a-chance,
accessed 13 July 2019.
d - Robert Walton, “Dominion threatens Millstone closure if plant shut out of support program”, Utility Dive, 10 July 2018,see https://www.utilitydive.com/news/dominion-threatens-millstone-closure-if-plant-shut-out-of-support-program/527364/, accessed 12 July 2018.
e - FirstEnergy has announced that it will begin the process to rescind the deactivation orders for its Perry and Davis Besse reactors.
See FirstEnergy Solutions, "FirstEnergy Solutions Applauds Enactment of HB6 Legislation", 24 July 2019, op. cit.

The Millstone nuclear plant was listed in 2017 as the most profitable in the U.S. through 2019,
at US$14/MWh. 475 Yet Dominion used the threat of closure of Millstone as leverage to securestate support. In a 2017 study commissioned by the Stop the Millstone Payout coalition,a group composed of competitive energy companies—NRG, Calpine and Dynegy and theElectric Power Supply Association (EPSA)—challenged Dominion’s claims. The study showedthat state support for Millstone would cost ratepayers US$330 million per year, translating to a
15–20 percent increase in supply costs. 476

475 - Geoffrey Haratyk, “Early Nuclear Retirements in Deregulated U.S. Markets: Causes, Implications and Policy Options”, Center for
Energy and Environmental Policy Research, MIT, March 2017, see https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/3723775/MIT-EarlyNuclear-Retirement-3-2017.pdf, accessed 29 May 2019.
476 - Stop The Millstone Payout, “Amid New Data, Dominion’s Closure Threats Face The $1 Billion Question Administrator”,
11 October 2017.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Exelon Generation communicated in February 2019, that its three nuclear plants in Illinois,
Braidwood, Byron and Dresden were…showing increased signs of economic distress, which could lead to an early retirement,
in a market that does not currently compensate them for their unique contribution to grid
resiliency and their ability to produce large amounts of energy without carbon and air
pollution. The May 2018 PJM capacity auction for the 2021-2022 planning year resulted in thelargest volume of nuclear capacity ever not selected in the auction, including all of Dresden,
and portions of Byron and Braidwood. Exelon continues to work with stakeholders on statepolicy solutions, while also advocating for broader market reforms at the regional and federal
level. 477

As noted by Nucleonics Week (NW), “The company had not previously said publicly that thoseplants were at risk of early closure.”478
In January 2018, Exelon had already secured Zero Emissions Credits for its Quad Cities andClinton reactors, which equates to a cumulative value over the expected life of the ZEC
contracts, without any adjustments, of US$3.5 billion. 479 Currently, its Dresden, Byron and
Braidwood reactors with an installed capacity of 6.9 GW, are not eligible for ZECs, as theexisting support for Quad Cities and Clinton “fill[s] up the scope of the existing ZEC program
under Illinois law”. 480
Legal efforts to overturn ZEC contracts in Illinois (and New York) were rejected by theSupreme Court on 14 April 2019. 481 As WNISR2018 reported, the Electric Power Supply
Association (EPSA) had filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court of the Northern District ofIllinois opposing the proposed ZECs for Exelon, stating that “bailing out uneconomic power
plants is a bad deal for Illinois ratepayers, who will see their electric bills go up across thestate”. 482
The Supreme Court ruling follows federal appeals court rulings in New York 483 and Illinois484
during September 2018, which endorsed the constitutional rights of states to establish
financing for generators and to regulate electricity prices. By doing so the courts have rejected
contentions that support for nuclear power by state legislation (such as ZECs) influences
477 - United States Securities And Exchange Commission, “Annual Report Pursuant To Section 13 Or 15(d) Of The Securities Exchange
Act Of 1934 For The Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2018”, Form 10‑K, 8 February 2019, see https://otp.investis.com/clients/us/exelon1/
SEC/sec-show.aspx?FilingId=13204272&Cik=0001109357&Type=PDF&hasPdf=1, accessed 29 May 2019.
478 - NW, “Changes needed to help Illinois plants: Exelon”, 28 February 2019.
479 - Illinois Commerce Commission, “Public Notice of Successful Bidders and Average Prices —Illinois Power Agency January 2018
Procurement of Zero Emission Credits from Facilities Fueled by Nuclear Power”, 25 January 2018,see https://www.ipa-energyrfp.com/?wpfb_dl=1450, accessed 29 May 2019.
480 - Ibidem.
481 - Barbara Grzincic, “Supreme Court lets New York, Illinois nuclear power subsidies stand”, Reuters, 14 April 2019,see https://www.reuters.com/article/nuclear-subsidies-lawsuit/supreme-court-lets-new-york-illinois-nuclear-power-subsidies-standidUSL1N21X1N8, accessed 30 May 2019.
482 - Keith Goldberg, “Nuke Plant Subsidies Flout FERC, Power Cos. Say”, Law360, 15 February 2017,see https://www.law360.com/articles/892374/ill-nuke-plant-subsidies-flout-ferc-power-cos-say, accessed 15 May 2017.
483 - U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, “Coalition for Competitive Electricity, et al. v. Zibelman, et al.”, Case 17‑2654,
Document 224‑1, Decided 27 September 2018, see https://statepowerproject.files.wordpress.com/2018/09/second-circuit-zec-decision.pdf,
accessed 30 May 2019.
484 - U.S. Court of Appeals For the Seventh Circuit, “Electric Power Supply Association, et al., Plaintiffs Appellants, v.
Anthony M. Star, Director of the Illinois Power Agency, et al., Defendants Appellees”, Appeals from the U.S. District Court
for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, Case 17‑2433 and 17‑2445, Document 151, Argued 3 January 2018, Filed
13 September 2018, see https://statepowerproject.files.wordpress.com/2018/09/7th-circuit-zec-decision.pdf, accessed 30 May 2019.

| 135

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

the prices that result from the wholesale auction system established by the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission (FERC) and therefore distorts the market mechanism for determining
which energy generators should close. 485 Lawyers observed that the rulings do not resolve theunderlying tensions between state subsidies and wholesale electricity markets. 486
On 18 April 2019, the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) awarded Zero Emission
Certificates (ZECs)487 to Salem‑1 and ‑2 and Hope Creek reactors. 488 The State Legislature
passed the Zero Emissions Certificate Law in May 2018489, noting the “moral imperative
for the State to invest in energy infrastructure that does not produce greenhouse gases.”490
Welcoming the decision, Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG) stated that, “We are pleased
with the decision to award ZECs to PSEG to help support New Jersey’s primary supplyof zero-carbon electricity. The BPU just saved the people of the State hundreds of millionsof dollars in what would have been higher energy costs, thousands of jobs lost and tons ofenvironmentally damaging air emissions.”491 Opposition to the ZEC legislation, including fromNew Jersey’s Ratepayer Advocate and a generators’ group in the Pennsylvania-New JerseyMaryland Interconnection LLC (PJM) market, said there is no evidence three nuclear units
in New Jersey need ratepayer subsidies to survive. 492 In testimony to the Board, from State
Rate Counsel President Stephanie Brand it was stated that modeling used by the utilities inthe subsidy application did not account for the addition of renewable energy resources overthe long term or increased energy efficiency requirements: “In short, they skewed the analysis
of future revenues in order to deflate those revenues and support their claim 3 of financial
distress.”493
The data suggests that the ZEC Act would require New Jersey electric distribution companies(“EDC”) to collect approximately [US]$300 million per year from New Jersey retail
distribution customers based on annual data. This amount would be incremental to charges
collected from distribution customers and transmission for other programs. For the three
nuclear units, the ZEC Act would result in a [US]$10/MWh revenue adder for each unit’s

485 - U.S. Court of Appeals For the Seventh Circuit, Appeals from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois,
Case 17‑2433 and 17‑2445, Document 151, Filed 13 September 2018, op. cit.
486 - NW, “US Supreme Court declines ZEC ruling review, boosting nuclear subsidies”, 18 April 2019.
487 - In other states, ZEC also stands for Zero Emission Credits.
488 - Division of State Energy Services, “In The Matter Of The Implementation Of L. 2018, c. 16 Regarding The Establishment Of A
Zero Emission Certificate Program For Eligible Nuclear Power Plants”, Before the NJBPU, Application for Zero Emission Certificatesof Salem 1, Salem 2 and Hope Creek Nuclear Power Plants, Docket No. EO18080899, and Dockets Nos EO18121337–EO18121339,
18 April 2019, see https://www.bpu.state.nj.us/bpu/pdf/boardorders/2019/20190418/4-18-19-9A.pdf, accessed 29 May 2019.
489 - Peter Key, “NJ Lawmakers Pass Nuke Subsidies, Boosted RPS”, RTO Insider, 12 April 2018,see https://www.rtoinsider.com/nuclear-subsidies-new-jersey-zec-rps-90356/, accessed 29 May 2019.
490 - -NJBPU, “Citing Urgency of Climate Change, New Jersey Board of Public Utilities Awards ZECs to Preserve Salem One andTwo and Hope Creek”, Press Release, 18 April 2019, see https://www.nj.gov/bpu/newsroom/2019/approved/20190418.html, accessed
29 May 2019.
491 - PSEG, “PSEG Responds to BPU Decision to Award Zero Emission Certificates (ZECs) to its Nuclear Plants”, Press Release,
18 April 2019, see https://nj.pseg.com/newsroom/newsrelease72, accessed 12 July 2019.
492 - NW, “No case for new Jersey nuclear subsidies, state ratepayer advocate says”, 7 February 2019.
493 - Anjalee Khemlani, “Rate Counsel president tells BPU: PSEG should not qualify for subsidies”, ROI-NJ, 4 February 2019,see https://www.roi-nj.com/2019/02/04/uncategorized/rate-counsel-president-tells-bpu-pseg-should-not-qualify-for-subsidies/,
accessed 29 May 2019.

| 136

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

owner if the Board approves the three applications… The ZEC Act allows the Applicants, who
are merchant owners, to cover costs—including the cost of capital. 494

The credits were to be available immediately, which will net approximately US$10/MWhamounting to US$100 million in subsidies per year for each reactor through 2022. The twounits at Salem owned by Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG) subsidiary PSEG Nuclear
and 43 percent by Exelon are licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to operate
until 2036 and 2040. Hope Creek is licensed to operate until 2046.
For the third time in as many years, FirstEnergy Solutions has sought to secure state financing
for its reactors in Ohio. Both Davis Besse and Perry reactors are long considered at risk of closuredue to economic factors. 495 On 31 March 2018, FirstEnergy Solutions Corp. and six affiliateddebtors each filed a voluntary petition for protection under Chapter 11 of the United States
Bankruptcy Code in the Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Ohio. 496 The company
is currently under petition at the NRC due to its failure to secure sufficient decommissioning
funds for its three nuclear plants. 497 A 2017-estimate put decommissioning costs for the three
nuclear plants at US$5.4 billion, with a current fund level of only US$2.5 billion. 498 In April 2018,
First Energy filed official notification with the NRC of its bankruptcy and planned closure of
Beaver Valley (Pennsylvania), as well as the two reactors at Davis Besse and Perry in Ohio. 499
First Energy noted: “We are actively seeking policy solutions at the state and federal level asan alternative to retiring these plants, which we believe still have a crucial role to play in thereliability and resilience of our regional grid.”500 but that “short of significant market changes...
right now, we have nothing in front of us that allows us to rescind that deactivation notice.”501
FirstEnergy’s debts amounted to US$2.8 billion.502

494 - Stefanie A. Brand, “In the Matter Of The Implementation Of L. 2018, C.16 Regarding The Establishment Of A Zero Emission
Certificate Program For Eligible Nuclear Power Plants—Joint Certification Of Bob Fagan And Maximilian Chang On Behalf Of
The New Jersey Division Of Rate Counsel”, Division of Rate Counsel, Before the NJBPU, Docket No. EO18080899, 31 January 2019,see https://www.nj.gov/rpa/docs/EO18080899_ZEC_Chang_Fagan_Certification_REDACTED.pdf, accessed 29 May 2019..
495 - Mark Cooper, “Power Shift: The Deployment of a 21st Century Electricity Sector and the Nuclear War To Stop It”, Institute forEnergy and the Environment, Vermont Law School, 1 June 2015, see https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2745357,
accessed 28 May 2019.
496 - Robert Walton, “FirstEnergy Solutions files for bankruptcy after pushing for DOE emergency order”, Utility Dive, 2 April 2018,see https://www.utilitydive.com/news/firstenergy-solutions-files-for-bankruptcy-after-pushing-for-doe- emergency/520371/; andFirstEnergy Solutions, “FirstEnergy Solutions Corp. (18‑50757)”, 31 March 2018, see https://cases.primeclerk.com/FES/Home-Index,
both accessed 29 May 2019.
497 - Margrethe Kearney, Andrene Dabaghi, “Citizen Complaint and Request for Enforcement Action Regarding FirstEnergy Nuclear
Facility Operations in Ohio and Pennsylvania”, Environmental Law & Policy Center, Petition to Victor M. McCree, Executive Director
for Operations, NRC, 27 March 2018, see http://elpc.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/001-ELPC-2.206-Petition-re-FirstEnergy.pdf,
accessed 29 May 2019.
498 - Julia A. Moriarty, “2017 Nuclear Decommissioning Funding Study”, Callan Institute, September 2017,see https://www.callan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Callan-2017-NDT-Survey.pdf, accessed 29 May 2019.
499 - Louise Lund, “Acknowledgment Of FirstEnergy Solutions, FirstEnergy Nuclear Generation, And FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating
Company Bankruptcy Notification”, Division of Licensing Projects, U.S.NRC, Letter to Donald A. Moul, President and Chief Nuclear
Officer, FirstEnergy Solutions, 6 April 2018, see https://www.nrc.gov/docs/ML1809/ML18093B546.pdf, accessed 29 May 2019.
500 - David E. Hess, “FirstEnergy Files Letter With NRC Affirming Plans To Deactivate Beaver Valley, 2 Other Nuclear Power Plants”,
PA Environment Digest, 25 April 2018, see http://paenvironmentdaily.blogspot.com/2018/04/firstenergy-files-letter-with-nrc.html,
accessed 29 May 2019.
501 - Nick Malawskey, “Clock ticks toward TMI shutdown”, PennLive, 26 April 2018, see https://www.pennlive.com/news/2018/04/
clock_ticks_toward_tmi_shutdow.html, accessed 29 May 2019.
502 - Jessie Balmert , “Energy overhaul: ‘Clean Air Program’ just for nuclear plants, not wind or solar”, Cincinnati.com, 28 May 2019,see https://eu.cincinnati.com/story/news/politics/2019/05/27/ohio-energy-no-money-wind-solar-just-nuclear-plants/3739552002/J,
accessed 12 July 2019.

| 137

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 138

The decision of FirstEnergy Solutions is a further signal that just because reactors haveobtained 20-year license extensions does not mean they will operate through the full license
period. The Beaver Valley Units 1 and 2 in 2009 were issued by the NRC 20‑year license
extensions to permit them to operate until 2036 and 2047 respectively.503 FirstEnergy had
notified the NRC only in May 2017 that it planned to file a license extension in 2020 for the one
Perry reactor, whose current license expires in 2026. The 42‑year-old Davis‑Besse reactor was
granted an NRC license extension in 2015, to operate through 2037.504“

Despite bankruptcy filings in 2018, FirstEnergy continued
to spend millions of dollars on lobbying and advertising”FirstEnergy’s power purchase agreement approved in March 2016505 was blocked by the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) a month later. Through 2016 and 2017, FirstEnergy
then continued to lobby for the establishment of Zero Emission Nuclear (ZEN) legislationthat would support their Davis Besse and Perry reactors, which could be worth an estimated
US$300 million a year to their owners. In October 2017, a fresh bill was introduced, the ZEN
resource program, aimed at saving the Davis Besse and Perry reactors, leading FirstEnergy
to claim that it “would increase the likelihood of keeping the plants operational throughout
the life of the program.”506 The bill reduces the amount FirstEnergy would receive over two
consecutive periods of six years, from US$300 million in previous introduced legislation to
US$180 million.507 The Perry reactor was expected to operate at a profit of US$3.5/MWh during
2017–2019, with Davis Besse at US$4.5/MWh through the same period. These figures do notinclude the additional income if Ohio’s emissions credits are finally approved.
The proposed legislation made no progress during the year 2018, despite appeals by the bill’ssponsor to move forward following FirstEnergy’s filing for bankruptcy.508
Despite bankruptcy filings in 2018, FirstEnergy continued to spend millions of dollars
on lobbying and advertising in efforts to secure favorable legislative changes in Ohio andPennsylvania.509 In spring 2019, the Ohio legislature introduced the House Bill 6 or HB6, which
would create the Ohio Clean Air Program and provide “clean energy” credits to zero‑emission

503 - NRC, “Beaver Valley Power Station—License Renewal Application”, Updated 13 December 2016,see https://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/bvalley.html, accessed 29 May 2019.
504 - NRC, “Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station, Unit 1—License Renewal Application”, 20 April 2016,see https://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/davis-besse.html, accessed 29 May 2019.
505 - John Funk, “FirstEnergy’s Davis-Besse, Sammis power plants make money after all: FirstEnergy profits show”, Cleveland.com,
27 April 2016, see http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2016/04/firstenergys_davis-besse_sammi.html, accessed 29 May 2019.
506 - Ohio Legislature, “Senate Bill 128”, Introduced by Senators Eklund, LaRose, 132nd General Assembly Regular Session 2017‑2018,
S. B. No. 128, see https://www.legislature.ohio.gov/legislation/legislation-documents?id=GA132-SB-128, accessed 29 May 2019; andAndrew Cass, “New Ohio House Bill aims to subsidize state’s nuclear power plants”, The News Herald, 13 October 2017, see http://www.
news-herald.com/general-news/20171013/new-ohio-house-bill-aims-to-subsidize-states-nuclear-power-plants, accessed 29 May 2019.
507 - NW, “New Ohio legislation introduced to give financial support to nuclear plants”, 19 October 2017.
508 - Ohio Public Radio, “Group Of FirstEnergy Employees Come To Columbus To Save Firm’s Two Ohio Nuclear Power Plants”,
3 April 2018, see http://wcbe.org/post/group-firstenergy-employees-come-columbus-save-firms-two-ohio-nuclear-power-plants,
accessed 29 May 2019.
509 - Jessie Balmert , “Energy overhaul: ‘Clean Air Program’ just for nuclear plants, not wind or solar”, Cincinatti Enquirer,
28 May 2019, see https://eu.cincinnati.com/story/news/politics/2019/05/27/ohio-energy-no-money-wind-solar-just-nuclearplants/3739552002/, accessed 28 May 2019; and Dave Anderson, “Bankrupt FirstEnergy Solutions spends millions on bailout campaigns
in Ohio and Pennsylvania”, Energy and Policy Institute, 11 April 2011, see https://www.energyandpolicy.org/firstenergy-bailout/,
accessed 12 July 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

power producers, including Davis Besse and Perry plants.510 Financing is proposed through the
Ohio Clean Air Fund. Amendments made to the Bill by Republican sponsors meant that by
28 May 2019 it was clear that the primary beneficiary of the legislation will be FirstEnergy.
The estimated US$197.6 million that would be charged in new ratepayer fees would largely be
paid to FirstEnergy. Renewable energy companies will not be able to access the Ohio Clean
Air Program, with only small domestic wind turbines being eligible. Legislatures have also
proposed terminating existing programs that encourage electricity providers to purchaserenewable energy as well as energy efficiency programs. Finally, coal power with sequestration
would be eligible for financing.
The proposed HB6 and its effective termination of support for significant renewable energy
programs and energy efficiency—while instead supporting coal plants in Ohio—runs counterto those who have argued that ZEC support for nuclear plants is a necessary part of an eventual
transition to renewable energy. This includes the United States Court of Appeals for the Second
Circuit, which in September 2018 stated that in the case of New York, “the ZEC program aims
to prevent nuclear generators that do not emit carbon dioxide from retiring until renewablesources of energy can pick up the slack.”511
HB6 charges Ohioans a US$1 fee each month starting in January 2021 for nuclear energy.
The fee is higher for businesses (US$15) and industrial customers (US$250 to US$2,500).
The fees would in early versions of the legislation be applied for five years through 2026,
but amendments by House Republicans would lock in the charges until 2030.512 It has been
estimated that these subsidies would net EnergySolutions US$320 million each year for its
two nuclear plants. As reported in Ohio, the bailout of FirstEnergy is nothing new. Since 1999,
FirstEnergy has received US$10.2 billion in state subsidies.513
Opposition to the legislation included the Chair of the Energy Generation Committee, and theEnergy and Natural Resources Committee:
This is a bailout plain and simple. What has happened is that First Energy and First Energy
Solutions, they’re in bankruptcy and they need a bailout. (…) Everyone will pay even if theirelectricity is not provided by nuclear power plants, everyone in Ohio will have to pay. First
Energy has been bailed out before.514

On 13 May 2019, analysis of the economics of Davis Besse and Perry reactors argued that “TheOhio nuclear units are operating profitably in covering their going forward and avoidable costs
and future capital expenditures. Consequently, there is no rational economic reason for them510 - Ohio Legislature, “House Bill 6 Creates Ohio Clean Air Program”, Reported by the House Energy and Natural Resources
Committee, 133rd General Assembly, Regular Session Sub. H. B. No. 6, see https://www.legislature.ohio.gov/legislation/legislationsummary?id=GA133-HB-6, accessed 28 May 2019.
511 - United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, “Coalition for Competitive Electricity, et al. v. Zibelman, et al.,
Case 17‑2654, Document 224‑1” 27 September 2018, op. cit.
512 - Jessie Balmert , “Energy overhaul: ‘Clean Air Program’ just for nuclear plants, not wind or solar”, Cincinatti Enquirer,
28 May 2019, see https://eu.cincinnati.com/story/news/politics/2019/05/27/ohio-energy-no-money-wind-solar-just-nuclearplants/3739552002/, accessed 28 May 2019
513 - Ibidem.
514 - WFMJ, “House Bill 6 - clean air or multi million dollar bailout paid by energy customers?”, 21 May 2019, see http://www.wfmj.
com/story/40506111/house-bill-6-clean-air-or-multi-million-dollar-bailout-paid-by-energy-customers, accessed 12 July 2019.

| 139

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

to retire.”515 The calculations of the reactors was based on unit specific costs, “whose relative
accuracy has been verified by examining FirstEnergy financial statements in Securities andExchange Commission (SEC) filings.”516 This is in contrast to the PJM that uses industry
average single unit costs.
FirstEnergy rejected the analysis, citing that it “excludes critical cost components” including
capital spending requirements and ignores the fact that the plants did not clear PJM’s 2021/2022
capacity auction and will likely not clear future auctions. The power provider said that fixing
the consultant’s “obvious calculation errors” results in a net loss of more than $125 million/
year versus a profit for the plants.517
The justification for the HB6 legislation was also challenged in a May 2019 analysis fromthe Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA).518 It concluded that“FirstEnergy’s nuclear and coal plants are not needed to ensure electricity supply or reliability
in Ohio”, and that terminating the reactors is “unlikely to drive up electricity rates in Ohio—
but reducing energy efficiency and renewable energy could have that effect.” IEEFA contended
that, “If Ohio is serious about providing low cost sources of clean energy, it would make more
economic sense to invest in solar energy than to subsidize aging nuclear plants.”519
On 28 May 2019, the HB6 legislation was passed by the Ohio House.520 FirstEnergy was
hoping that approval by the Senate would take place during June 2019, before the end of thecurrent legislative sessions and when the utility was to decide whether to proceed with plans
for refueling of the Davis Besse reactor, which was scheduled for closure in 2020. Securing
HB6 would also likely see reversal of the decision to close Perry in 2021. While the legislature
ended on 28 June 2019, before the Senate could vote on HB6, additional dates were added tothe session. On 17 July 2019 the Senate passed HB6,521 and on 23 July 2019 the House also voted
to approve the Senate version of the legislation.522 The Governor of Ohio signed the legislation
into law the same day. Welcoming the legislation, FirstEnergy Solutions announced that it will
“begin the process to rescind the deactivation orders for its Perry and Davis‑Besse nuclear
power stations and immediately resume preparation for the mandatory Davis‑Besse refuelingoutage in the Spring.”523

515 - Paul M. Sotkiewicz, “The Market and Financial Position of Nuclear Resources in Ohio”, E-Cubed Policy Associates, 13 May 2019,see https://img1.wsimg.com/blobby/go/30b6d3a5-dffd-4a1b-9b4d-0bf3451282cd/downloads/OH%20Nuclear%20Analysis%20
20190513-final.pdf?ver=1559092681975, accessed 29 May 2019.
516 - Ibidem,
517 - Gavin Bade, “Ohio advances coal, nuclear subsidies after pressure from Trump campaign official”, Politico, 29 May 2019,see https://www.politico.com/story/2019/05/29/ohio-coal-nuclear-trump-1347274, accessed 30 May 2019.
518 - David Schlissel, “Bailout Bill a Bonanza for FirstEnergy Solutions, but a Boondoggle for Ohio Consumers”, IEEFA, May 2019,see http://ieefa.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Bailout-Bill-a-Bonanza-for-FirstEnergy-Solutions_May-2019.pdf, accessed
12 July 2019.
519 - Ibidem.
520 - Gavin Bade, “Ohio advances coal, nuclear subsidies after pressure from Trump campaign official”, Politico, 29 May 2019.
521 - Jim Provance, “Nuclear plant rescue clears Ohio Senate, but House punts”, The Blade, 17 July 2019, see https://www.toledoblade.
com/local/environment/2019/07/17/nuclear-plant-rescue-nears-final-votes/stories/20190717150, accessed 25 July 2019.
522 - John Funk, “Ohio Gov DeWine signs controversial nuke subsidy bill”, Utility Dive, 23 July 2019,see https://www.utilitydive.com/news/breaking-ohio-passes-controversial-nuke-subsidy-bill-by-one-vote/559342/, accessed 25 July 2019.
523 - FirstEnergy Solutions, “FirstEnergy Solutions Applauds Enactment of HB6 Legislation”, 24 July 2019, see https://www.
prnewswire.com/news-releases/firstenergy-solutions-applauds-enactment-of-hb6-legislation-300890693.html, accessed 25 July 2019.

| 140

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

The final version of HB6 will mean that from April 2021 through 2027, FirstEnergy Solutions
will receive quarterly payments that will net on average US$150 million each year fromadditional electricity charges on domestic and industrial customers. An additional nearly
US$50 million a year will be received by Ohio Valley Electric Corp to operate two old coalplants in the state.524 In addition, energy-efficiency standards will end for each utility in Ohio
once it achieves a 17.5-percent power reduction while also reducing the state’s renewable-energy
target from a maximum of 12.5 percent by 2027 to 8.5 percent by 2026—the level that, undercurrent law, utilities must reach by 2022.525 The American Wind Energy Association stated:“Ohio consumers and manufacturers want greater commitment to renewable energy, not less...
(it) won’t make Ohio’s air cleaner, but it will hike consumer electric bills and send both jobs
and clean energy investment to Ohio’s neighbors”.526 HB6 arguably sets a new standard forcostly and asymmetrical state action to bail out failing coal and nuclear investments while
disadvantaging efficiency and renewables.
In Pennsylvania, while legislative initiatives failed in 2018 to secure bailouts of nuclear plant
operators, efforts continued during the past year. A contentious debate has been underway
over the extent to which Exelon and FirstEnergy are seeking state support for their reactors
in the state citing unfavorable market conditions, while at the same time failing to disclosedetailed financial statements on grounds of commercial sensitivity. In May 2017, Exelon had
announced that TMI-1, scheduled for closure in September 2019, and Quad Cities in Illinois,
for the third year running, had not cleared the PJM base residual auctions. With FirstEnergy’s
Beaver Valley‑1 and ‑2 planned closures in May and October 2021 respectively,527 total closures
in Pennsylvania would represent 25 percent of the state’s nuclear generating capacity, but only
6 percent of the state’s overall power generation.
One analysis released in March 2019 provided insight into the economics of TMI andBeaver Valley nuclear plants operating in Pennsylvania.528 In the case of Exelon’s TMI‑1, it
reported that losses for 2018 were likely to be in the range of US$73 million; FirstEnergy’s twin
Beaver Valley units were found profitable by US$23–96 million per year depending on whether
they cleared the PJM auction, but could be as high as US$173 million if based on the day‑ahead
average Locational Marginal Price (LMP).
The PJM Interconnection in a 5 June 2019 analysis concluded that there would be “no reliability
impact from the planned closures of the Davis Besse, Perry and Beaver Valley nuclear units...
[however] it can reasonably be expected that imposing additional out-of-market subsidies toretain generation that would otherwise retire would have a chilling effect on new investmentin the longer term.”529
524 - Jeremy Pelzer, “Nuclear bailout bill passes Ohio legislature, signed by Gov. Mike DeWine”, Cleveland.com, 23 July 2019,see https://www.cleveland.com/open/2019/07/nuclear-bailout-bill-passes-ohio-legislature.html, accessed 25 July 2019.
525 - Ibidem.
526 - AWEA, “Ohio House Bill 6 passage will lead to higher electric bills, fewer jobs, and lost clean energy investment”, Press
Statement, 23 July 2019, see https://www.awea.org/resources/news/2019/ohio-house-bill-6-passage, accessed 21 August 2019.
527 - David E. Hess, “FirstEnergy Files Letter With NRC Affirming Plans To Deactivate Beaver Valley, 2 Other Nuclear Power Plants”,
PA Environment Digest, 25 April 2018, see http://www.paenvironmentdigest.com/newsletter/default.asp?NewsletterArticleID=43293&S
ubjectID, accessed 28 May 2019.
528 - Andrew G. Place et al., “Analysis of Pennsylvania Nuclear Plants and Available Policy Alternatives”, Pennsylvania Public Utility
Commission, 6 March 2019, see https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/5763986/Nuclear-Policy-Paper-PUC-CommissionerAndrew-G.pdf, accessed 28 May 2019.
529 - NW, “PJM analysis shows significant power price drop if reactors retire”, 13 June 2019.

| 141

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Two legislative efforts were underway in the Pennsylvania House and Senate in early 2019.530
In March 2019 an amendment was proposed to the 2004 Alternative Energy Portfolio
Standards (AEPS) Act that would provide financial support to the state’s nuclear plants, whichwere currently excluded.531 The principal sponsor of the bill made the case that “If we lose one
or more of these plants we might as well forget about all the time and money we’ve invested inwind and solar. [...] The Legislature can save Pennsylvania consumers money, keep our nuclear
power plants open and keep our air clean.”532 In contrast, the Natural Resources Defense
Council (NRDC) condemned the draft bill as…nothing more than a windfall for aging, uneconomical nuclear power plants. It fails to limit
carbon pollution or advance commonsense energy policy that transitions Pennsylvania awayfrom nuclear power and dirty fossil fuels to renewable sources and energy efficiency.533

Hearings began in April 2019, with both proponents and opponents contesting the benefits anddetriments of the legislation.534 The state’s Public Utility Commission (PUC) has estimatedthat the legislation if adopted would cost ratepayers between US$459 and US$551 million ayear in subsidies to FirstEnergy and Exelon.535 This estimate was on the basis that both TMI‑1
and Beaver Valley would be operating, which will no longer be the case as Exelon Generation
announced on 8 May 2019 that TMI‑1 will permanently close by 30 September 2019.536 As of
1 July 2019, legislation had yet to be approved.

530 - Pennsylvania State Senate, “Updating the Pennsylvania Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards (AEPS) Act”, Senate Bill 510,
Regular Session 2019–2020, 4 February 2019, see https://www.legis.state.pa.us//cfdocs/Legis/CSM/showMemoPublic.cfm?chamber=S&
SPick=20190&cosponId=28189, accessed 29 May 2019.
531 - Pennsylvania General Assembly, “House Bill 11”, Regular Session 2019‑2020, Referred to Committee on Consumer Affairs,
12 March 2019, see https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?sYear=2019&sInd=0&body=H&type=B&bn=11, accessed
28 May 2019.
532 - Marie Cusick, “Rep. Mehaffie talks up his nuclear bailout bill; opponents line up to trash it”, StateImpact Pennsylvania,
11 March 2019, see https://stateimpact.npr.org/pennsylvania/2019/03/11/rep-mehaffie-talks-up-his-nuclear-bailout-bill-opponents-lineup-to-trash-it/, accessed 29 May 2019.
533 - NRDC, “Pennsylvania Lawmaker Introduces Regressive Bill to Prop Up Nuclear Power”, Press Release, 11 March 2019,see https://www.nrdc.org/media/2019/190311-1, accessed 12 July 2019.
534 - Marie Cusick, “Political fight begins over bill to rescue Pennsylvania nuclear industry”, StateImpact Pennsylvania, 8 April 2019,see https://stateimpact.npr.org/pennsylvania/2019/04/08/political-fight-begins-over-bill-to-rescue-pennsylvania-nuclear-industry/?_
ga=2.28139580.1486885018.1559245881-6078996.1559245881, accessed 29 May 2019.
535 - Andrew G Place, Letter to the Senate Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure Committee, Public Utility Commission,
18 April 2019, see https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/5973561-Commissioner-Andrew-Place-memo-on-SB-510.html, accessed
29 May 2019; and Marie Cusick, “Pennsylvania utility regulator speaks out against state Senate’s nuclear bailout bill”, StateImpact
Pennsylvania, 22 April 2019, see https://stateimpact.npr.org/pennsylvania/2019/04/22/pennsylvania-utility-regulator-speaks-outagainst-state-senates-nuclear-bailout-bill/?_ga=2.257312011.1486885018.1559245881-6078996.1559245881, accessed 29 May 2019.
536 - Exelon Generation, “Three Mile Island Unit 1 To Shut Down By September 30, 2019”, 8 May 2018, see https://www.exeloncorp.
com/newsroom/Pages/Three-Mile-Island-Unit-1-To-Shut-Down-By-September-30,-2019.aspx, accessed 13 May 2019.

| 142

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 143

FUKUSHIMA STATUS REPORTINTRODUCTION
Eight years have passed since the Fukushima accident began in March 2011. Spent fuel removal
in Unit 3 has started following significant delays and the investigation to locate fuel debris in
Unit 2 was finally conducted, but with uncertain results. Although the evacuation order of apart of the evacuation zone was lifted again, only few residents have returned.
The assessment of health consequences remains controversial. Thyroid cancer in children
continues to increase, with ongoing controversies over the causal relationship with theaccident.
Other areas analyzed in this chapter are remaining food contamination, storage of contaminatedwater and the management of decontamination wastes that continue to accumulate.

ONSITE CHALLENGES
Current Status Reactors537
Water injection into all three units with fuel debris—Units 1, 2 and 3—has been continuing;
the temperature of the lower part of the reactor pressure vessels and the containment vessels
is currently maintained at 15–25 degrees Celsius. According to the survey map538 of radiation
doses, the levels measured across most of the site are below 10 μSv/h (micro-sievert perhour) but there are locations with levels of 100 μSv/h near the buildings.539 The dose inside
the reactor buildings is still high; the level at some locations is more than 10 mSv/h.540 The
amount of radioactive materials released from the reactor building is about 5×10 ‑12 Bq/cm3 forCs‑134 and about 3.5×10 -11 Bq/cm3 for Cs‑137 at the site boundary. These values are below the airconcentration limits set by the Japanese government.541
In April 2019 the work of spent fuel removal finally re-started after having been halted since thework at Unit 4 was completed in December 2014.542 Removal of spent nuclear fuel, comprising
566 fuel assemblies, at Unit 3 began on 15 April 2019. Since it was scheduled to start in the
537 - In this chapter, the following materials are used when there is no footnote: Secretariat of the Team for Countermeasures for
Decommissioning and Contaminated Water Treatment, “Summary of Decommissioning and Contaminated Water Management”,
Ministry for Economy Trade and Industry, Government of Japan, 28 March 2019, see https://www.meti.go.jp/english/earthquake/
nuclear/decommissioning/pdf/20190423_e.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
538 - TEPCO, “Results of the analysis of radioactive materials around Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station”, Undated(in Japanese), see http://www.tepco.co.jp/decommission/data/surveymap/, accessed 1 May 2019.
539 - TEPCO, “Fukushima Daiichi Ground Survey Map (for April 3 and 4, 2019)”, Undated (in Japanese),see http://www.tepco.co.jp/decommission/data/surveymap/pdf/2019/f1-sv2-20190425-j.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
540 - According to the results of the measurements made at Unit 1 from January to December 2018, the level at the first floor of
the reactor building at one point was 12 mSv.: TEPCO, “The air dose rate in the building, Data collection period: January 1, 2018 –December 31, 2018 at Unit 1”, 29 March 2019 (in Japanese), see http://www.tepco.co.jp/decommission/data/surveymap/pdf/2019/sv-u120190329-j.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
541 - Government-defined air concentration limits outside the perimeter monitoring area: 2.0 x 10 -5 Bq/cm3 for Cs‑134 and 3.0 x 10 -5 Bq/
cm3 for Cs‑137.
542 - TEPCO, “About the start of fuel extraction from spent fuel pool at Unit 3”, 15 April 2019 (in Japanese),see http://www.tepco.co.jp/decommission/information/newsrelease/reference/pdf/2019/1h/rf_20190415_1.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

middle of 2018 in the government’s medium‑ and long‑term roadmap,543 this was a delay of
about half a year.544 It is reported that the plan was delayed due to malfunction of the machinethat transfers the spent fuel to the transport container. The spent fuel will be moved to andstored in the common spent fuel pool. This work is scheduled to take about one year until
FY 2020.
At Unit 1 the removal of debris, which is an obstacle to the removal of spent fuel, was finallycompleted in February 2019. As for Unit 2, the process is still at the stage of designing thefuel removal method. In the most recent Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) roadmap
report,545 the plan has been significantly revised. Instead of removing the roof and walls ofUnit 2, the existing fuel handling machine is to be repaired, and then in combination witha new rig, spent fuel containers will be removed via the air lock platform newly installed in
Unit 2.
In the roadmap, the removal of spent fuel in Unit 1 and 2 is scheduled to start in Financial
Year (FY) 2023.
With regard to the removal of molten fuel debris, it is scheduled in the roadmap to determine
the removal method for the first unit in FY 2019. However, as of 1 July 2019, there has been
no official announcement. According to the Fukushima Daiichi decommissioning roadmap,
the fuel debris removal from the first unit will start by 2021 and be completed within ten
years. The timetable for the plan lacks credibility. The International Research Institute for
Nuclear Decommissioning (IRID) has estimated a range of volumes of molten fuel in the threereactors:546 for Unit 1, 232–357 tons, with a nominal value of 279 tons; Unit 2, 189–390 tons,
with a nominal value of 237 tons; and Unit 3, 188–394 tons, with a nominal value of 364 tons.
The reason that the corium mass is higher than the original fuel mass—69 tons in reactor 1,
and 94 tons in each of reactors 2 and 3—is that corium contains, in addition to the original
fuel, molten steel and concrete. Consequently, the corium masses are 2.5–4 times larger thanthe original fuel. The sum of the nominal quantities of corium is 880 tons, with the lower
range being 609 tons, and upper estimate being 1,141 tons. This nominal value of 880 tons is
3.4 times more than the original fuel in the three reactors.
On 13 February 2019, for the first time, a survey robot made direct contact with material in
the Reactor Pressure Vessel (RPV) of Unit 2.547 The maximum measurement of the dose at

543 - Inter-Ministerial Council for Contaminated Water and Decommissioning Issues, “Mid-and-Long-Term Roadmap towards theDecommissioning of TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station”, 26 September 2017, see https://www.meti.go.jp/english/
earthquake/nuclear/decommissioning/pdf/20170926_01a.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
544 - The first version of the roadmap (announced in December 2011) stated that fuel extraction was to begin at the end of 2014.
Therefore, this is a delay of four years in terms of this plan. Nuclear Emergency Response Headquarters Government and TEPCO
Mid‑to‑Long Term Countermeasure Meeting, “Mid‑and‑long‑Term Roadmap towards the Decommissioning of Fukushima Daiichi
Nuclear Power Station Units 1‑4”, Provisional Translation, 21 December 2011, see https://www.meti.go.jp/english/earthquake/nuclear/decommissioning/pdf/111221_02.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
545 - TEPCO, “Spent fuel pool measures schedule”, 30 May 2019 (in Japanese), see https://www4.tepco.co.jp/decommission/
information/committee/roadmap_progress/pdf/2019/d190530_06-j.pdf, accessed 30 June 2019.
546 - IRID, “Estimation of fuel debris distribution by the analysis and evaluation”, Japan Atomic Energy Society Fuel Debris ResearchCommittee, 4 October 2016, see http://irid.or.jp/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/20161004.pdf (in Japanese), accessed 30 June 2019.
547 - TEPCO, “Results of the Internal Survey of Reactor Vessel in Unit 2 of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station”, Preliminary
Report, 13 February 2019 (in Japanese), see http://www.tepco.co.jp/decommission/information/newsrelease/reference/pdf/2019/1h/rf_20190213_1.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.

| 144

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

the bottom of the containment vessel remains a lethal 43 Sv/h.548 While TEPCO had earlier
predicted that the material at the bottom of the RPV was molten fuel debris, the result of theinspection has raised many questions as to the location and condition of the molten fuel in
Unit 2. Radiation levels measured 30 cm from the material was recorded at 7 Sv/h, rather thanseveral hundred Sv/h anticipated by TEPCO. This led to questions not just over the amountof molten fuel remaining in the RPV and therefore how much has exited the RPV into thebasemat, but most significantly whether in fact all the molten fuel will in the end be removed.
The material that was lifted by a robotic arm in the February 2019 survey comprised mostlyof pebble‑like sediment, with speculation that this included zirconium cladding. Further
inspections are scheduled for the second half of 2019. As a result of the February inspection,
Akira Ono, head of the Fukushima Daiichi decommissioning project, stated on 28 March 2019that “At present, it is difficult to clearly say we are going to remove all fuel debris”.549,550
The inspection results of Unit 2 prompted Naoyuki Takaki, professor of nuclear engineeringat Tokyo City University, to state that “there could ultimately be a decision to stop debris
removal after pulling out as much debris as possible. In that case, we would have no option but
to consider building a sarcophagus like the one at the Chernobyl nuclear plant.”551 There has
been no change to the planned decommissioning completion period, which is set at 2041 to
2051.

Contaminated Water Management
The implementation of response measures for the contaminated water552 is still ongoing. With
regards to the frozen soil walls (land-side impermeable walls553), for which feasibility andhigh cost were considered to be a problem, TEPCO claimed that the walls had almost been
completed in March 2018.554 Many measures—such as pumping up of groundwater before
it flows into frozen soil walls and buildings—have reduced the amount of groundwater andrainwater flowing into buildings; as a result, the amount of newly generated contaminatedwater has decreased, but remains significant. The average quantity of contaminated water was
about 470 m3/day in FY 2014 and decreased to about 170 m3/day in FY 2018.555 In the roadmap,
the goal is to curb the amount to 150 m3/day by 2020.

548 - The maximum dose rate measured was 43 Gy/h. The assumption made here is 1 Gy/h = 1 Sv/h. See TEPCO, “Results of internalsurvey of Unit 2 reactor containment vessel”, 19 March 2019 (in Japanese), p.11, see https://www.meti.go.jp/earthquake/nuclear/osensuitaisaku/committtee/genchicyousei/2019/0319_01_03.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
549 - Toshiyuki Suzuki, “Unclear debris map casts shadow over decommissioning of Fukushima plant”, The Mainichi, 9 April 2019,see https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20190409/p2a/00m/0na/021000c, accessed 30 June 2019.
550 - International Research Institute for Nuclear Decommissioning, “Decommissioning of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station
and R&D of IRID”, 29 May 2018 (in Japanese), p.26, see http://www.irid.or.jp/_pdf/20180529.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
551 - Toshiyuki Suzuki, “Unclear debris map casts shadow over decommissioning of Fukushima plant”, The Mainichi, 9 April 2019.
552 - Generic term for water contaminated with radioactive materials such as seawater injected at the time of the accident andgroundwater flowing into the building and mixing with highly contaminated water.
553 - An ice wall is made by circulating a refrigerant (approximately –30 degrees Celsius) in piping buried underground to freeze thegroundwater.
554 - TEPCO, “Current Status of Landside Impermeable Wall”, 7 March 2018 (in Japanese),see https://www.meti.go.jp/earthquake/nuclear/osensuitaisaku/committtee/osensuisyori/2018/pdf/020_01_00.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
555 - Data until January 2019.

| 145

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

As for this contaminated water, the work for removing radioactive materials from the water
has been continued using multi‑nuclide removal equipment and other devices. The treated,still contaminated water—containing tritium in particular, the only material that is notplanned to be removed—continues to be stored in storage tanks. As of 21 March 2019, the total
storage volume in the tanks is about 1.12 million m3 . The current plan is to increase the totaltank storage capacity to 1.37 million m3 by the end of 2020.556 If the capacity is enhanced, thedifference would be 250,000 m3 , which would extend the capacity by about four years, at a
production rate of 170 m3/day. However, if the capacity of the storage tanks is 1,000 m3 pertank, a new tank is still needed about every six days.
The Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA) recommends dumping the contaminated water into
the ocean, but TEPCO has not decided on its final disposal method because of fear of backlashfrom local residents. The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) held public hearingson the future handling of treated water containing tritium in August 2018 in Fukushima
Prefecture and Tokyo.557 However, most of the participants including the representatives of thefishermen’s co-op raised concerns about reputational damage and safety.558
A major setback to plans for discharge into the Pacific Ocean emerged in August 2018, when it
was reported by Kyodo News that TEPCO’s Advanced Liquid Processing System (ALPS) had not
performed as had been widely reported otherwise.559 On 28 September 2018, TEPCO admitted
that of the 890,000 m3 of water treated by the ALPS (as of September 2018) and stored intanks, about 750,000 m3 tons contained higher concentrations of radioactive materials
than levels permitted by the safety regulations for release into the ocean.560 In 65,000 m3 oftreated water, the levels of strontium‑90 are more than 100 times above the safety standards,
according to TEPCO. In some tanks, the levels are exceeding the limits by a factor of 20,000.
These admissions contrast with earlier official statements on ALPS, claiming the system would
reduce radioactivity levels “to lower than the permissible level for release”.561
The disclosures from TEPCO further antagonized local communities. The METI
contaminated‑water task‑force is currently reviewing the implications of these disclosures andhow to proceed with management of the contaminated water. TEPCO indicated that it will be

556 - TEPCO, “Treated Water Portal Site”, see http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/decommission/progress/watertreatment/index-e.html,
accessed 1 May 2019.
557 - Sub-committee secretariat for handling of treated water by multi-nuclide removal equipment, “Holding of information sessions
and public hearings about the handling of treated water by multi-nuclide removal equipment”, METI, 31 July 2018 (in Japanese),see https://www.meti.go.jp/earthquake/nuclear/osensuitaisaku/committtee/takakusyu/setsumei-kochokai.html?platform=hootsuite,
accessed 1 May 2019.
558 - Sub-committee secretariat for handling of treated water by multi-nuclide removal equipment, “Information sessions and public
hearings”, METI, October 2018 (in Japanese), see https://www.meti.go.jp/earthquake/nuclear/osensuitaisaku/committtee/takakusyu/
pdf/010_02_00.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
559 - The Japan Times, “ALPS system at Fukushima No. 1 plant failing to remove more than tritium from toxic cooling water”,
19 August 2018, see https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2018/08/19/national/alps-system-fukushima-no-1-plant-failing-remove-tritiumtoxic-cooling-water/#.XRoxptNKjOQ, accessed 30 June 2019.
560 - TEPCO, “Collection of ALPS treated water data (outlet concentration levels)”, METI, 17 October 2018 (in Japanese),see https://www.meti.go.jp/earthquake/nuclear/osensuitaisaku/committtee/takakusyu/pdf/010_04_05.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019; andThe Asahi Shimbun, “Editorial: TEPCO bungles it again in dealing with Fukushima tainted water”, 9 October 2018,see http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201810090025.html, accessed 30 June 2019.
561 - Division of Water Chemistry and Fusion Engineering Division, “Treatment of contaminated water stored in Fukushima Dai-ichi
Nuclear Power Plant”, Investigation Committee on the Nuclear Accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, Atomic Energy
Society Japan, 10 September 2013, see http://www.aesj.or.jp/jikocho/Treatmentofcontaminatedwater.pdf, accessed 30 August 2019.

| 146

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 necessary to conduct further processing of the contaminated water, which could take several
years.562
Coastal fishermen in Fukushima prefecture are currently voluntarily refraining from fishingactivities within 10 km of the Fukushima Daiichi plant. However, identified marine productswith levels exceeding the contaminated threshold (100 Bq/kg) are decreasing,563 and thefishermen are currently operating on a trial basis, i.e., they are fishing and selling somefish species for which safety has been confirmed. Their concern is that a decision to release
tritiated water into the Pacific would have a major impact on their attempts to restore theirfragile fishing businesses.564,565
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has reviewed METI for its decommissioning
efforts. In the final report of its fourth review (5–13 November 2018),566 the IAEA highlightsthat storage in tanks is only a temporary measure and that sustainable options are needed.567
At the same time, the IAEA has long argued for a Pacific Ocean release.

Worker Exposure
According to TEPCO, the monthly average workers’ radiation dose was about 0.36 mSv in
FY 2017, a decline from about 0.59 mSv in FY 2015. The burden on employees of subcontractor
companies is large. The number of workers in February 2019 was 7,264, of which 962 TEPCO
employees and 6,302 employees from subcontractors.568 The maximum effective dose forexternal exposure was 5.38 mSv for TEPCO employees and twice as high or 10.87 mSv for
subcontractor employees.
According to the questionnaire survey involving workers other than TEPCO employees
conducted by TEPCO and released in December 2018,569 41.9 percent of the workers responded
that they felt “anxious.” The reasons given for such anxiety included “the impact of [radiation]
exposure on health.” The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) supervised andgave guidance to 290 business operators who carried out decommissioning work, of which
562 - Shaun Burnie, “TEPCO Water Crisis”, Greenpeace Germany, 22 January 2019,see https://storage.googleapis.com/planet4-japan-stateless/2019/06/eef0f147-tepco_water_crisis.pdf, accessed 30 June 2019.
563 - According to the Fisheries Agency, only one sample exceeded the standard value of 100 Bq/kg (1,665 samples, excess rate is
0.1 percent) among the samples examined in the January to March 2019 survey. Fisheries Agency of Japan, “Results of the monitoringon radioactivity level in fisheries products—Summary of Monitoring on fishery products (as of Mar.31, 2019)”, 31 March 2019 (inJapanese), see http://www.jfa.maff.go.jp/e/inspection/index.html, accessed 1 May 2019.
564 - Fukushima Prefecture Fisheries Cooperative Federation, “Approach to trial operation in Fukushima Prefecture”, Undated(in Japanese), see http://www.fsgyoren.jf-net.ne.jp/siso/sisotop.html, accessed 1 May 2019.
565 - TEPCO, “Collection of ALPS treated water data (outlet concentration levels)”, 1 October 2019 (in Japanese),see https://www.meti.go.jp/earthquake/nuclear/osensuitaisaku/committtee/takakusyu/pdf/010_04_05.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
566 - IAEA, “IAEA International Peer Review Mission on Mid‑and‑Long‑Term Roadmap Towards the Decommissioning of
TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (Fourth Mission)”, Mission Report to the Government of Japan, Mission from
5–13 November 2018, Report issued 31 January 2019, see https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/19/01/missionreport-310119.pdf,
accessed 1 May 2019.
567 - Ibidem, p.8.
568 - TEPCO, “Evaluation situation of exposure dose of workers of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station”, 27 March 2019
(in Japanese), see http://www.tepco.co.jp/decommission/information/newsrelease/exposure/pdf/2019/exposure_20190327-j.pdf,
accessed 1 May 2019.
569 - TEPCO, “Results of questionnaire for improvement of working environment (the ninth) and future direction of
improvement”, December 2018 (in Japanese), see https://www.meti.go.jp/earthquake/nuclear/decommissioning/committee/
osensuitaisakuteam/2018/13/3-7-2.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.

| 147

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

more than half (154) were in violation of labor laws. The rate of detected infringements was
53.1 percent, up from 38.4 percent in the previous fiscal year.570 The most frequent type ofviolation was inadequate payment of premium wages.
According to multiple newspapers,571 MHLW recognized the decommissioning work of the
Fukushima accident as the cause of cancer developed by two workers. The causal relationshipbetween radiation exposure and illness was recognized for one of them on 4 September 2018.
This employee of a subcontractor company was in charge of radiation control at multiple
nuclear power plants from 1980 to September 2015. After the Fukushima accident started
in March 2011, he was in charge of measuring the radiation dose of locations slated fordecontamination prior to implementation. He was diagnosed with lung cancer in February 2016
and subsequently died. His cumulative dose was estimated at 195 mSv, of which about 74 mSv
was from exposure after 3/11.572,573
The other worker was also a subcontractor company employee for whom causal relationshipbetween radiation exposure and illness was recognized on 12 December 2018. For about
11 years, between November 1993 and March 2011, he had been working in the maintenance ofelectrical facilities at several nuclear power plants. Immediately after 3/11, he started carryingout restoration work of the power supply. In June 2017, he was diagnosed with thyroid cancer.
His cumulative exposure dose was estimated at 108 mSv of which about 100 mSv were due topost‑3/11 exposure, including about 37 mSv calculated to be internal exposure.574,575 As a result,
so far the Fukushima events have been recognized by MHLW as the cause of cancer for six
people: two cases of thyroid cancer, three cases of leukemia, and one case of lung cancer.
In addition, death caused by overwork also occurred. The cause of one worker’s death wasrecognized by the MHLW as overwork in November 2018 while TEPCO had claimed at a press
conference the day after his death in October 2017576 that there was no causal relationship withthe work.577

570 - MHLW, “Supervision instruction results of companies performing decommissioning work in Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power
Station of TEPCO and companies performing decontamination work in Fukushima Prefecture (2018)”, Press Release, 29 March 2019
(in Japanese), see https://www.mhlw.go.jp/content/11300000/000497488.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
571 - Currently, the MHLW has ceased to disclose these types of information to the general public through its website. We can find out
only indirectly, through media reports.
572 - The Asahi Shimbun, “Occupational accident recognized for a man who died of lung cancer”, 5 September 2018 (in Japanese),see https://digital.asahi.com/articles/ASL9524MNL95UBQU001.html?iref=pc_ss_date?iref=pc_extlink, accessed 5 May 2019.
573 - The MHLW has established criteria such as “cumulative 100 mm or more” and “period from exposure to onset of 5 years or more”
for recognizing a worker’s exposure as an occupational accident.
574 - The Asahi Shimbun, “Exposure during work after the nuclear accident causes cancer, 6th worker’s occupational accident
recognition”, 13 December 2018 (in Japanese) see https://digital.asahi.com/articles/ASLDF42SBLDFUBQU009.html, accessed
1 May 2019.
575 - The Japan Times, “Tepco-linked firm employee’s thyroid cancer caused by work after Fukushima nuclear plant meltdown, labor
ministry admits”, 13 December 2018, see https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2018/12/13/national/tepco-linked-firm-employees-thyroidcancer-caused-work-fukushima-nuclear-plant-meltdown-labor-ministry-admits/#.XLwWky97F24, accessed 1 May 2019.
576 - The Asahi Shimbun, “Overwork death at Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, Man’s bereaved family holds a press conference”,
8 November 2018 (in Japanese), see https://digital.asahi.com/articles/ASLC73R7GLC7UGTB00B.html?iref=pc_ss_date, accessed
1 May 2019.
577 - TEPCO, “Progress of the medium- and long-term roadmap”, 26 October 2017 (in Japanese),see https://www4.tepco.co.jp/library/movie/detail-j.html?catid=61693&video_uuid=t4cs581k, accessed 1 May 2019.

| 148

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

The MHLW has commissioned an epidemiological survey of workers.578 As of April 2019, thefirst cycle of the baseline survey, which examines the health condition and smoking habits ofthe examinees, has finally ended. However, prospective subjects are reluctant to participate in
the survey. As of 15 January 2018, out of the 19,808 prospective subjects, 6,873 have participatedin the survey (34.7 percent), 3,432 have refused to participate (17.3 percent), 7,392 have notreplied (37.3 percent), and the contact information was unavailable for 1,685 (8.5 percent).579
According to media reports, it is believed that a strong distrust of TEPCO and the governmentis the main reason why the number of participants is so low.580

OFFSITE CHALLENGES
Current Status of Evacuation
As of 5 April 2019, 39,724 Fukushima residents are still living as officially designated evacuees(7,235 are living in the prefecture, 32,476 are living outside the prefecture, and 13 are missing).581
According to Fukushima Prefecture, the peak level of evacuees was 164,865 (May 2012).582 The
official figures do not include the so‑called “self‑evacuees” who left areas of Fukushima thatwere outside the officially designated evacuation areas. As of October 2016, the official figure
for these evacuees was 26,601.583 Starting in 2017, Fukushima Prefecture no longer included
these evacuees in its statistics.
The government has continued its policy of lifting evacuation orders in the remaining
evacuation zones.584 On 10 April 2019, for the first time in two years, evacuation orders
were lifted for a Restricted Residence Zone585 and a Zone in Preparation for Lifting the578 - The emergency dose limit was raised from 100 mSv to 250 mSv from 14 March 2011 to 16 December 2011. During this time, it isestimated that about 20,000 people were engaged in emergency work, and 174 people were exposed to levels above 100 mSv, whichis the 5‑year dose limit under normal circumstances. In this study, it is said that the health effects of low‑dose exposure will befollowed up throughout the lives of all these approximately 20,000 emergency workers. See Radiation Effects Research Foundation,“Epidemiological study of the TEPCO Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station emergency workers”, Joint Study (in Japanese),see https://news.rerf.or.jp/hp/top.html, accessed 1 May 2019.
579 - Radiation Effects Research Foundation, “Report of the epidemiological study of the TEPCO Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power
Station emergency workers”, March 2018 (in Japanese), see https://news.rerf.or.jp/hp/pdf/report_h29.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
580 - NHK, “Nuclear Power Plant Accident ‘Heroes’ Now—The actual situation regarding their refusal to participate in the radiation
exposure survey”, 6 March 2018 (in Japanese), see https://www.nhk.or.jp/gendai/articles/4105/index.html, accessed 1 May 2019.
581 - Fukushima Disaster Measures Headquarters, “Immediate report on damage caused by the 2011 Tohoku Region Pacific
Coast Earthquake”, Report No. 1752, Fukushima Prefecture (in Japanese), see https://www.pref.fukushima.lg.jp/uploaded/life/416950_1041904_misc.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
582 - Fukushima prefecture, “Steps for Revitalization Fukushima”, 25 December 2018 (in Japanese), p.3,
see https://www.pref.fukushima.lg.jp/uploaded/attachment/322728.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
583 - The Mainichi, “Voluntary nuclear evacuees to face housing assistance gap”, 6 January 2017,see https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20170106/p2a/00m/0na/007000c, accessed 30 June 2019.
584 - The conditions for lifting an evacuation order are: 1. It is certain that the annual accumulated value (estimated value) of air
dose rate will be less than 20 mSv, 2. Recovery of infrastructure (electricity, gas, etc.) and life services (medical, postal, etc.) essential
for daily life. Decontamination of children’s living environment and so on will sufficiently progress, 3. Sufficient consultation withprefectures, municipalities and residents. See METI, “Requirements for lifting an evacuation order”, December 2011 (in Japanese),see https://www.meti.go.jp/earthquake/nuclear/kinkyu/hinanshiji/2017/pdf/0310_01e.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
585 - The area where levels may exceed the annual accumulated value of 20 mSv one year after the accident.

| 149

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Evacuation Order586. The location where the evacuation orders were lifted this time is a part of
Okuma Town, one of the host towns for the Fukushima Daiichi plant.587
However, population numbers have not significantly increased in areas where evacuation orders
have been lifted. According to the latest residents’ intention survey by the Reconstruction
Agency, for example, only 4.9 percent of the residents of Namie Town588 have returned and49.9 percent of the residents have already decided not to return to the town.
The treatment of voluntary evacuees589 is worsening. Fukushima Prefecture stopped providing
free housing for voluntary evacuees at the end of March 2017 and although the prefecture
subsequently started providing rent assistance for low‑income households, this assistance
was also terminated at the end of March 2019590. Once the free housing offer is terminated,
they are no longer considered as voluntary evacuees and they disappear from the statistics ofevacuees. The Governor of Fukushima Prefecture has not given a clear answer to the question
from a reporter regarding the necessity of conducting a fact-finding investigation into theirsituation.591 These voluntary evacuees may eventually consider returning to Fukushima asa result of being denied the right to evacuate, something the government and Fukushima
Prefecture are effectively trying to force on tens of thousands of Japanese citizens. In its
recovery plan, Fukushima Prefecture has set a goal to reduce the number of evacuees insideand outside the prefecture to zero within FY 2020.592 On current trends it will miss this target
by a wide margin.
On 25 October 2018, at the UN General Assembly, Special Rapporteurs from the UN Human
Rights Commission criticized the Japanese government’s policies as it relates to evacuees.593
The UN Rapporteurs pointed out that the conditions for lifting evacuation orders should be aradiological situation limiting exposure to 1 mSv/year instead of the government‑designated
20 mSv/year. In addition, they expressed strong concerns about evacuees being pressured toreturn due to the termination of free housing support. However, the Japanese Ministry ofForeign Affairs has argued that, “The Government of Japan is seriously concerned about suchclaims, as it could unnecessarily inflame public anxiety, cause confusion, and further trouble
people suffering from reputational damage in disaster-hit areas.”594

586 - The area where it is certain that annual accumulated value will be less than 20 mSv one year after the accident.
587 - METI, “Conceptual diagram of evacuation zones”, 5 April 2019 (in Japanese),see https://www.meti.go.jp/earthquake/nuclear/kinkyu/hinanshiji/2019/sanko1gainenzu.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
588 - In this town, all areas became evacuation zones after the accident, but some evacuation orders were lifted on 31 March 2017.
589 - People who lived outside the evacuation zones but evacuated voluntarily.
590 - The Mainichi, “Voluntary nuclear evacuees to face housing assistance gap”, 6 January 2017.
591 - Fukushima Prefecture, “Governor Press Conference”, 17 December 2018 (in Japanese),see https://www.pref.fukushima.lg.jp/site/chiji/kaiken20181217.html#1, accessed 1 May 2019.
592 - Fukushima Prefecture, “Fukushima restoration plan (the third)”, December 2015 (in Japanese),see https://www.pref.fukushima.lg.jp/uploaded/attachment/152267.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
593 - Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, “Japan must halt returns to Fukushima, radiation remains a concern,says UN rights expert”, United Nations, 25 October 2018, see https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.
aspx?NewsID=23772&LangID=E, accessed 1 May 2019.
594 - Ministry of Foreign Affairs, “Response to the Joint Communication from two UN Special Rapporteurs from the Governmentof Japan concerning the Tokyo Electric Power Company Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station accident”, 6 November 2018,see https://www.mofa.go.jp/fp/hr_ha/page25e_000260.html, accessed 1 May 2019.

| 150

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 151

In August 2018, UN Special Rapporteurs also raised multiple issues of human rights violations
around the Fukushima Daiichi plant, including families with children, and involving
decontamination workers.595
According to the Reconstruction Agency, as of the end of March 2019, there were approximately
51,000 evacuees of the Great East Japan Earthquake in Japan as a whole, including the 39,000
official “nuclear” evacuees.596 Evacuees were primarily from Miyagi, Iwate and Fukushima
Prefectures, which were seriously damaged by this magnitude 9 earthquake and tsunami.
Although time has passed since the earthquake and these prefectures are in the process ofrestoration, Fukushima Prefecture alone has different characteristics from the other two
prefectures. The total number of evacuees in and outside the prefecture decreased to 4,466 in
Iwate Prefecture and 6,159 in Miyagi Prefecture as of the end of March 2019. However, the paceof reduction has been slow in Fukushima Prefecture; the prefecture still counts 41,454 evacuees.
As shown in Figure 34, the number of evacuees reported in Fukushima Prefecture fell sharply
in 2017 when, as noted above, free housing for voluntary evacuees was cut off and they were
removed from the database.
Indirect but disaster-related deaths remain a cause of major concern.597 Fukushima Prefectureis still showing an increasing trend (see Figure 35).598
Figure 34 | Change in the Number of Evacuees

Change in the Number of Evacuees December 2011 - March 2019
Persons
160 000

Fukushima
Prefecture

140 000
120 000
100 000

MiyagiPrefecture

80 00060 000

Iwate
Prefecture

40 000
20 000© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

0

12
2011

06
2012

12
2012

06
2013

12
2013

06
2014

12
2014

06
2015

12
2015

06
2016

12
2016

06
2017

12
2017

06
2018

12
2018

03
2019

Source: Compiled by Tadahiro Katsuta, based on Reconstruction Agency, “Change in the number of evacuees”, 2019.

595 - Greenpeace Japan, “On the Frontline of the Fukushima Nuclear Accident: Workers and Children—Radiation risks and humanrights violations”, March 2019, see https://storage.googleapis.com/planet4-japan-stateless/2019/03/b12d8f83-frontfksm_en.pdf,
accessed 30 June 2019.
596 - Reconstruction Agency, “Change in the number of evacuees”, Government of Japan, 26 April 2019 (in Japanese),see http://www.reconstruction.go.jp/topics/main-cat2/sub-cat2-1/20190329_hinansha_suii.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
597 - In comparison to deaths due to direct damages caused by the tsunami or earthquake, deaths due to indirect damages (such as
poor physical condition or stress) that occur as a result of living as an evacuee following the disaster.
598 - The Figure is based on the compilation of annual data starting from Reconstruction Agency, “Number of disaster-related deathsof the Great East Japan Earthquake (as of 31 March 2012)”, announced 11 May 2012 (in Japanese), see http://www.reconstruction.go.jp/
topics/main-cat2/sub-cat2-6/20140526131634.html, accessed 1 May 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 152

The termination of the compensation for damages is also a problem. For example, according
to the guidelines for damages set forth by the Dispute Reconciliation Committee for Nuclear
Damage Compensation,599 compensations paid for psychological damages end one financial
year after a relevant evacuation order is lifted (for restricted residential zones and zones in
preparation for lifting the evacuation order). For example, in Tomioka‑cho, for which theevacuation order was lifted two years ago, the compensation ended in March 2019.
Victims of the nuclear accident can file a claim with the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)
Center for Nuclear Damage Dispute Settlement. The ADR Center proposes to victims and
TEPCO a settlement compromise (settlement amount). TEPCO is still paying compensation
for damages, and as of 19 April 2019, the total payment has reached approximately 8,972 billion
yen (US$81.5 billion600).601 The total number of claims for damages from individuals andcorporations is about 3 million.
Figure 35 | Number of Disaster-related Deaths of the Great East Japan Earthquake

Number of Disaster-related Deaths of the Great East Japan Earthquake 2012-2018
Persons
2 500

Fukushima Prefecture
2 000

1 500

Miyagi Prefecture

1 000

Iwate Prefecture

500© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

0
March
2012

March
2013

March
2014

March
2015

March
2016

March
2017

March
2018

Sept.
2018

Source: Compiled by Tadahiro Katsuta, based on Reconstruction Agency, “Number of disaster-related deaths of the Great East Japan Earthquake”, 2019.

TEPCO has made three pledges in its business plan: “Complete compensation payments up
to the very last person”, “rapid and thorough compensation” and “respect of intermediate
settlement proposals”.602 However, TEPCO continues to reject the settlement proposals
of many collective complaints against the company’s compensation practice. For example,
599 - MEXT, “Guideline for judgment on the range of nuclear damage by the TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi and Daini Nuclear
Power Station accident”, Undated, in Japanese, see http://www.mext.go.jp/component/a_menu/science/detail/__icsFiles/
afieldfile/2014/02/04/1329116_1_1.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
600 - Calculated at 110 yen per US$, as of the end of April 2019. The same conversion rate is used hereafter.
601 - TEPCO, “Payment of compensation”, as of the end of March 2019 (in Japanese),see http://www.tepco.co.jp/fukushima_hq/compensation/results/, accessed 1 May 2019.
602 - Nuclear Damage Compensation and Decommissioning Support Organization, “New special comprehensive business plan (thirdplan)”, TEPCO, Certification Application, 11 May 2017 (in Japanese), see http://www.tepco.co.jp/press/release/2017/pdf1/170511j0102.pdf,
accessed 1 May 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Namie Town filed a collective complaint in 2013 on behalf of more than 15,000 town inhabitants.
The complaint called for a uniform increase, noting that the amount of compensation was
not appropriate for the reality of peoples’ damages. However, as TEPCO continued to reject
the settlement proposal, the settlement mediation by the ADR Center was discontinued in
April 2018.603 In November 2018, Namie Town filed a lawsuit against TEPCO and the Japanese
government.604
As a result of persistent efforts of lawyers representing 13,000 Japanese citizens, criminal trials
have been held since 2017 against three former TEPCO executives (the former Chair of TEPCO
and two former vice presidents) on charges of professional negligence resulting in death andinjury. The trial has been ongoing, with sentencing scheduled for 19 September 2019. 605 If foundguilty, the executives could see five-year prison sentences (though unlikely). Such an outcome
would have widespread ramifications in Japan, not just for ongoing legal actions, but for the
future prospects for TEPCO’s nuclear operations now centered on the Kashiwazaki Kariwa
reactors.

Radiation Exposure and Health Effects
Fukushima Prefecture has been continuing its thyroid cancer examination program forchildren who were under 18 years old at the time of the accident.606 As of April 2019, the numberof patients diagnosed with a malignant tumor or suspected of having a malignant tumor is 212;
169 individuals underwent surgery (see Table 10).607
Even now, the Prefectural Oversight Committee Meeting for Fukushima Health Management
Survey does not recognize the causal relationship between the occurrence of thyroid cancer
and radiation exposure post‑3/11. However, analysis based on previous examinations isbeing carried out. In February 2019, referring to the report of the United Nations ScientificCommittee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR), the oversight committee reported
that there would be no increase in cancer detection rate associated with the increase inradiation dose.608 However, due to the high uncertainty of this UNSCEAR report, the oversightcommittee decided to continue the analysis instead of drawing any final conclusions.

603 - Namie Town, “Namie Town ADR Group Appeal, briefing session on discontinuation”, 20 April 2018 (in Japanese),see https://www.town.namie.fukushima.jp/soshiki/1/18360.html, accessed 1 May 2019.
604 - The Asahi Shimbun, “TEPCO and state slapped with new lawsuit over nuclear crisis”, 28 November 2018,see http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201811280053.html, accessed 1 May 2019.
605 - For example, the progress report of the trial is summarized below: NHK, “TEPCO criminal trial ‘The truth of the nuclear
accident’” (in Japanese), see https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/special/toudensaiban/, accessed 1 May 2019.
606 - Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, “Report of the Fukushima Health Management
Survey”, Revised Version, Fukushima Medical University, 5 December 2018, see http://kenko-kanri.jp/en/pdf/report_e.pdf, accessed
1 May 2019.
607 - Fukushima Prefecture, “Status of thyroid examination results”, The 34th Prefectural Oversight Committee Meeting for
Fukushima Health Management Survey, 8 April 2019 (in Japanese), see https://www.pref.fukushima.lg.jp/uploaded/attachment/320844.pdf,
accessed 1 May 2019.
608 - Fukushima Prefecture, “Relationship between UNSCARE Estimated Thyroid Absorbed Dose by Municipalities and the
Detection Rate of Malignant Tumors or Suspected Malignant Tumors”, The 12th Thyroid Examination Evaluation Section Meeting,
22 February 2019 (in Japanese), see https://www.pref.fukushima.lg.jp/uploaded/attachment/311587.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.

| 153

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 154

Table 10 | Thyroid Cancer Statistics in Fukushima Prefecture
Number of people diagnosed with a malignant tumor or suspected of having a malignant tumor, and surgical case [number of people]

Survey(Year executed)

Subjects(Number of
examinees)

Number of examinees
diagnosed with a malignant
tumor or suspected of having
a malignant tumor(Comparison of males andfemales)Numberof operations
performed

Surgical cases

Note

Preliminary survey(FY2011-FY2013)

367,637(300,472)

116(Male 39, Female 77)

102

Benign nodule: 1
Papillary carcinoma:100
Poorly differentiated cancer:1

As of
31 March, 2018

Full-scale survey-Second survey(Fy2014-Fy2015)

381,244(270,529)

71(Male 32, Female 39)

52

Papillary carcinoma:51
Other thyroid cancer:1

As of
31 March, 2018

Full-scale survey-Third survey(Fy2016-Fy2017)336,669(217,530)

21(Male 8, Female 13)

15

Papillary carcinoma:15

As of
31 December, 2018

Full-scale survey-Forth survey(Fy2018-Fy2019)

293,945(76,979)2(Male 1, Female 1)

0

-

As of
31 December, 2018

Survey for age 25(FY2018)

22,653(2,005)2(Male 1, Female 1)

0

-

As of
31 September, 2018

-

212

169

-

-

Total

Source: Compiled by WNISR based on Fukushima Prefecture, “The 34th Prefectural oversight committee meeting for Fukushima health management
survey, Reference 1, Status of thyroid test results”, 8 April 2019 (in Japanese).

Food Contamination
During the year ending March 2019, according to the official statistics, among 299,500 sample
measurements conducted for food contamination across the country, 313 food items wereidentified that exceeded the threshold.609, 610 Fukushima Prefecture has the highest number of
those detections (125 items). For example, some bamboo shoots and wild boar meat exceeded
the threshold. The number of detected items has increased compared to that of FY 2017(200 items). According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW), inspections
have been conducted prior to shipment and most of the contaminated food items have beenfound in areas under shipment restriction.
The Consumer Agency continues to investigate reputational damage. According to a March 2019
survey, among those who care about the production area at the time of food purchase, theportion of people wishing to buy food stuffs that do not contain radioactive substances was
15.6 percent, a significant drop from 27.9 percent in February 2013.611 However, on the other
hand, the number of people who are not aware of food inspections such as shipping restrictions
609 - Standard value established by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW): The level of radioactive cesium is 100 Bq/kg
for food, 10 Bq/kg for drinking water, 50 Bq/kg for milk, and 50 Bq/kg for infant food.
610 - MHLW, “Public inspection result FY 2018 (outline)”, Preliminary Value, 28 March 2019 (in Japanese),see https://www.mhlw.go.jp/content/11135000/000502940.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
611 - The survey wording was: “If you answered that you ‘care’ or ‘somewhat care’ about the food production area when shopping inyour daily life, please answer this question. Why are you worried about where the food was produced?” In March 2019, only 15.6 percent
answered: “Because I want to buy foods that do not contain radioactive substances.” See Consumer Agency, “The fact-finding of
consumer awareness about reputational damage (the 12th)”, 6 March 2019 (in Japanese), see https://www.caa.go.jp/disaster/earthquake/
understanding_food_and_radiation/pdf/understanding_food_and_radiation_190306_0003.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 increased from 22.4 percent in 2015 to 44.8 percent. The reduction in reputational damage, as
demonstrated by these results, may be because people’s memory of the Fukushima accident
itself has faded, or that they have given up on safety, rather than a consequence of people
gaining a better understanding of radioactivity.
On the other hand, the impact of 3/11 on food exports is still severe. The Japanese government
filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO) on the grounds that South Korea
would arbitrarily and unfairly discriminate when importing Japanese food.612 Japan’s request
was granted at the first trial held in 2018, but Japan lost the case at the Appeals tribunal on
11 April 2019.613 As a result, South Korea has been able to continue its import restrictions onfood produced in Japan.
After 3/11, 54 countries had imposed import restrictions and as of April 2019, the regulations
remain in force in 23 countries. In particular, eight countries including South Korea, China,
and the U.S. do not import from Fukushima Prefecture.614

Decontamination615,616
Decontamination of the Special Decontamination Area617 managed by the Japanese government
in Fukushima Prefecture ended in March 2018, and work in the Intensive Contamination Survey
Area618 ended already in March 2017. According to the Ministry of the Environment (MoE),
a budget of about ¥2.9 trillion (US$26 billion) was spent on decontamination resulting in
about 16.5 million m3 of contaminated soil and other waste.619 However, it cannot be said thatdose rates in Fukushima Prefecture have returned to the situation prior to the Fukushima
accident.620 The difficult-to-return zones have not been subject to decontamination. However,decontamination testing has been carried out.621

612 - MoFA, “WTO dispute resolution ‘Restriction on import of Japanese marine products by Korea’, issuance of report of seniorcommittee”, 12 April 2019 (in Japanese), see https://www.mofa.go.jp/mofaj/press/danwa/page4_004887.html, accessed 1 May 2019.
613 - WTO, “Korea — Import Bans, and Testing and Certification Requirements for Radionuclides”, Dispute Settlement, DS495,
Reports Adopted 26 April 2019, see https://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/dispu_e/cases_e/ds495_e.htm, accessed 1 May 2019.
614 - The policy varies from country to country. China, for example, stopped importing all food from multiple prefectures, including
Fukushima Prefecture. South Korea banned food imports that are also restricted in Japan as well as fishery products from several
prefectures, including Fukushima. Singapore stopped importing forest products from Fukushima Prefecture. See Ministry ofAgriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, “Elimination and relaxation of food and other food import restrictions in foreign countries andregions due to the nuclear accident”, as of 15 April 2019 (in Japanese), see http://www.maff.go.jp/j/export/e_info/pdf/kisei_gaiyo_ja.pdf,
accessed 1 May 2019.
615 - MoE, “Environmental Remediation”, Homepage, Undated, see http://josen.env.go.jp/en/, accessed 1 May 2019.
616 - MoE, “Environmental Remediation in Affected Areas in Japan”, 26 March 2019, see http://josen.env.go.jp/en/pdf/environmental_
remediation_1903.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
617 - A high dose area within a 20 km radius of the power plant, located around the difficult‑to‑return zone.
618 - It covers all eight prefectures, including Fukushima Prefecture, except for the Special Decontamination Area managed by thegovernment.
619 - MoE, “Current Status of Efforts to Revitalize the Environment of Disaster-Stricken Areas”, 2 March 2018 (in Japanese),see https://www.env.go.jp/jishin/rmp/conf/19/mat04.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
620 - Fukushima Prefecture, “Results of the environmental radioactivity measurement (provisional value)”, as of 26 April 2019
(in Japanese), see http://www.pref.fukushima.lg.jp/sec_file/monitoring/kakuchihou.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
621 - It is considered as an area where residence will be restricted well into the future. However, decontamination work to enable
residence is currently being carried out in some areas. See MoE, “Specified Restoration and Revitalization Base”, Undated(in Japanese), see http://josen.env.go.jp/kyoten/index.html, accessed 1 May 2019.

| 155

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

On 16 August 2018, the Special Rapporteur of the UN Human Rights Commission issued astatement warning that workers engaged in the cleanup of the Fukushima accident were at risk
from radiation exposure and serious exploitation.622
The work of transferring contaminated soil from a temporary storage site in Fukushima
Prefecture to an intermediate storage facility623 has been in progress since FY 2015. Althoughland acquisition for the facility has not yet ended, storage has begun in some areas.624
According to the MoE, the decontaminated soil to be transported is about 14 million m3 . As of
19 April 2019, approximately 2.7 million m3 of decontaminated soil had been moved.625 In otherwords, only about 20 percent has been transported during the four-year period.
No plans have been developed for the final disposal of decontaminated soil out outside
Fukushima Prefecture after 30 years of storage. The MoE plans reutilization of decontaminatedsoil, for example, on agricultural land as it is difficult to find a disposal site outside theprefecture. A demonstration project was planned to reuse the soil in road construction asembankment in Nihonmatsu City, Fukushima Prefecture, but it was canceled in June 2018 due
to local opposition.626
As for contaminated soil outside the prefecture, 329,104 m3 of removed soil is stored
at 28,026 locations and 142,859 m3 of waste is stored at 9,320 locations as of the end of
March 2019.627 These are to be disposed of in landfills. As of March 2019, a demonstration testof landfill disposal is being conducted for about 641 m3 of soil/waste at the Tokai-mura Japan
Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) site in Ibaraki Prefecture, and about 217 m3 of soil/waste at anopen space in Nasu Town, Tochigi Prefecture.628

CONCLUSION ON FUKUSHIMA STATUS
The Japanese government and TEPCO are promoting highly controversial policies.
Decommissioning work is leading to occupational diseases; evacuation orders are lifted but
people do not wish to return; decontamination waste (soil)—collected by decontamination
workers who were exposed—shall be reused. Thus Japan’s policies regarding the ongoing crisis
at Fukushima, supposed to protect its people, appear to be implemented at the expense of its
people.
622 - Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, “Japan: Fukushima clean-up workers, including homeless, at grave riskof exploitation, say UN experts”, United Nations, 16 August 2018, see https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.
aspx?NewsID=23458&LangID=E, accessed 1 May 2019.
623 - Until final disposal, facilities store removed soil, waste, incinerated ash with levels exceeding 100,000 Bq/kg, etc. that weregenerated from decontamination activities in Fukushima Prefecture.
624 - MoE, “Interim Storage Facility”, Undated, see http://josen.env.go.jp/en/storage/, accessed 1 May 2019.
625 - MoE, “Accumulated (From 2015) Transportation Status”, as of 23 April 2019 (in Japanese),see http://josen.env.go.jp/chukanchozou/transportation/#section01, accessed 1 May 2019.
626 - Sankei Shimbun, “Difficult situation for treatment of decontamination soil in Fukushima, ‘This is not what we were promised’
Residents’ backlash”, 7 March 2019 (in Japanese), see https://www.sankei.com/affairs/news/190307/afr1903070050-n1.html,
accessed 1 May 2019.
627 - MoE, “Number of storage locations and storage amount of removed soil and other materials in the Key Contamination Survey
Area (outside Fukushima Prefecture)”, as of the end of March 2018 (in Japanese), see http://josen.env.go.jp/zone/pdf/removing_soil_
storage_amount_h30_03.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.
628 - MoE Decontamination Team, “Result of demonstration project concerning landfill disposal of removed soil (interim report)”,March 2019, see http://www.env.go.jp/press/t04_mat01.pdf, accessed 1 May 2019.

| 156

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 157

DECOMMISSIONINGSTATUS REPORT 2019
INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW
Decommissioning Worldwide
The defueling, deconstruction, and dismantling—summarized by the term decommissioning—are the final steps in the life cycle of a nuclear power plant. The process is technicallycomplex and poses major challenges in terms of long-term planning, execution andfinancing. Decommissioning was rarely considered in the reactor design, and the costs fordecommissioning at the end of the lifetime of a reactor were usually discounted away, and thus,
subsequently, largely ignored. However, as an increasing number of nuclear facilities either
reach the end of their operational lifetimes or are already closed, the challenges of reactor
decommissioning are coming to the fore, and also attract increasing public attention.
Figure 36 | Closed Reactors Worldwide by Country and Reactor Technology

Closed Reactors Worldwide by Country and Reactor Technology
in Units, as of 1 July 2019
0USA
UK
Germany
Japan
FranceRussiaCanadaSwedenBulgaria
Italy
UkraineSlovakia
Spain
Lithuania
South Korea
Armenia
Belgium
India
Kazakhstan
Netherlands
Taiwan

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Technologies
PWR
BWR
GCR
LWGR
PHWR
FBR
Others© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Sources: compiled by WNISR, 2019

Note: PWR = Pressurized Water Reactor, BWR = Boiling Water Reactor, GCR = Gas Cooled Reactor, LWGR = Light Water Gas-Cooled Reactor,
PHWR = Pressurized High Water Reactor, FBR = Fast Breeder Reactor.
The cluster “other” includes the reactor technologies: High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (HTGR), Heavy Water Gas Cooled Reactor (HWGCR),
Steam Generating Heavy Water Reactor (SGHWR), Heavy Water Light Water Reactor (HWLWR), and yet “others”.

As of 1 July 2019, worldwide, there are 181 closed reactors totaling 78.1 GW of capacity. Since
WNISR2018, eight additional reactors (4.5 GW) have been officially closed: two each in Japan,
Russia and the U.S., and one each in South Korea and Taiwan. Close to 60 percent of the closed

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 158

units are located in Europe (85 in Western Europe and 23 in Central and Eastern Europe),
followed by North America (42) and Asia (31). Around 78 percent or 140 reactors are using
three reactor technologies: Pressurized Water Reactors or PWRs (30 percent or 54 units),
Boiling Water Reactors or BWRs (27 percent or 48 units), and the Gas-Cooled Reactors or
GCRs (21 percent or 38 units). Of the latter, the majority (27 reactors) are located in the U.K.
Figure 36 gives an overview of the closed reactors by country and reactor technology. The U.S.
and Germany each have six different reactor types, the highest diversity among the countries
with closed reactors. Spain has only three closed reactors but three different reactor types todismantle.
Decommissioning is only at its very beginnings. Assuming a 40‑year average lifetime, a further
207 reactors will close by 2030 (reactors connected to the grid between 1979 and 1990); andan additional 125 will be closed by 2059; this does not even account for the 85 reactors whichstarted operating before 1979, an additional 28 reactors in Long‑term Outage (LTO) and the46 reactors under construction as of mid‑2019.

Overview of Reactors with Completed Decommissioning
Figure 37 | Overview of Completed Reactor Decommissioning Projects, 1953–2017

Overview of Completed Reactor Decommissioning Projects, 1953-2017
in the U.S., Germany and Japan
United States
Shippingport
Yankee NPS
Elk River
Pathfinder
SaxtonCVTR
Big Rock Point
Haddam Neck
Fort St. Vrain
Maine Yankee
Rancho Seco-1
TrojanShorehamGermany
VAK Kahl
Gundremmingen-A (KRB A)
HDR Grosswelzheim
Niederaichbach (KKN)
Wuergassen (KWW)

Japan
JPDR
1954

1960
Construction

1970

1980

1990

2000

2010

2017

Commercial Operation Decommissioning© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Source: WNISR and IAEA-PRIS, 2018-19

As of the first quarter of 2019, 162 units are globally awaiting or in various stages ofdecommissioning, eight more than in the first quarter of 2018. No reactor completed
decommissioning worldwide since WNISR2018 (see Figure 37). Overall, only 19 reactors,

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 with a capacity of 6 GW, were fully decommissioned, i.e. only 8 percent of the total 78.1 GW
withdrawn from the grid. Of the 19 decommissioned reactors, only 10 have been returned togreenfield sites. The average duration of the decommissioning process, independent of thechosen strategy, is around 19 years, with a very high variance: the minimum of six years for the
22‑MW Elk River plant, and the maximum of 42 years for the 17‑MW CVTR (Carolinas‑Virginia
Tube Reactor), both in the U.S.

ELEMENTS OF NATIONALDECOMMISSIONING POLICIESWhen analyzing decommissioning policies, one needs to distinguish between the processitself (in the sense of the actual implementation), and the financing of decommissioning.
The technological process can generally be divided into three main stages, which are briefly
described hereunder (for more details, see WNISR2018).
ɆɆ The Warm-up-stage comprises the post-operational stage, the dismantling of systems
that are not needed for the decommissioning process. Also, the dismantling of higher
contaminated system parts begins. An indicator for the progress of this stage is thedefueling of the reactor as it is crucial for further undertakings: defueling means removing
the spent fuel from the reactor core and the spent fuel pools.
ɆɆ The Hot-zone-stage comprises the dismantling activities in the hot zone, i.e. dismantlingof highly contaminated or activated parts, e.g. the reactor pressure vessel (RPV) and its
internals (RVI), and the biological shield.
ɆɆ The Ease-off-stage comprises removal of operating systems as well as decontamination of
the buildings. This stage ends ideally with the demolition of the buildings and the releaseof the reactor site as a greenfield for unrestricted use but the release as a brownfield isallowed in some countries, which means that the buildings can also be further used, fornuclear or other purposes.
With respect to financing, four main approaches are observable: Public budget, external
segregated fund, internal non-segregated fund, and internal segregated fund (for more details,
see WNISR2018).

CASE STUDIES NORTH AMERICA, EUROPE, AND ASIAWNISR2019 contains case studies of decommissioning in North America (U.S. and Canada),
Europe, and Asia and counted 140 closed reactors in the U.S., Canada, France, Germany,
Japan, and the U.K. that represent almost 79 percent of the worldwide total closed fleet. The
country case-studies suggest that both duration and costs have been largely underestimated.
In nearly all the cases, the few started decommissioning projects encounter delays as well as
cost increases.
The U.S. have decommissioned the highest number of reactors (13), followed by Germany (5),and Japan (1). By contrast, the early nuclear states U.K., France and Canada have not fully
decommissioned one single reactor. Table 11 reflects the little progress that the entire
decommissioning process is making: between July 2018 and June 2019, no additional reactor| 159

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

was completely decommissioned, and little progress can be reported for the rest of the reactors
undergoing decommissioning.
In Germany, Neckarwestheim-1 and Philippsburg-1 were defueled.629 In France, it wasannounced that the decommissioning of the small 80 MW Brennilis reactor will be further
delayed, with the earliest possible completion in 2038. The decree formalizing that timeframe
is expected to be signed by 2021.630 In Japan, Genkai‑2 and Onagawa‑1 have been officiallyclosed; WNISR2018 already counted these two reactors in Longt-Term Outage (LTO). In
2019, Japan Atomic Power Company (JAPC), which owns the two Tokai and the two Tsuruga
reactors—all four are either closed or in LTO—announced that it considers setting up a
subsidiary for decommissioning its reactors together with EnergySolutions as operator.631
JAPC is decommissioning the GCR Tokai-1 as well as Tsuruga-1 since 2017 and supports
decommissioning works for the Fukushima Daiichi plant. Already in 2016, EnergySolutions and
JAPC signed a cooperation agreement and JAPC members visited the Zion site in the USA.632
In the U.S., there was no tangible progress in reactor decommissioning, but it seems that the
new organizational model of selling the license to a decommissioning contractor, identified
in WNISR2018, gains popularity. In December 2018, the Vermont Public Utility Commission
approved the operating license transfer from Entergy to Northstar, mainly due to theaccelerated decommissioning plan, Northstar would start with decommissioning no later
than 2021.633 The transfer also includes the dry storage facility.634 In June 2019, Duke Energy
announced that it plans to sell the operating license for Crystal River‑3, which is currently inLong Time Enclosure (LTE), to the Northstar and Orano joint-venture.635 Before this deal, themodel was already applied to three reactors (Zion‑1, Zion‑2 and Lacrosse); here the license wassold to waste-management company EnergySolutions, which seems to be involved in most if
not all decommissioning projects. In early 2019, Omaha Public Power District (OPPD), ownerand operator of Fort Calhoun‑1, signed a contract with EnergySolutions for technical support
for decommissioning the reactor, although no details about the contract, including its value,
have been disclosed.636 The strategy has been changed to immediate dismantling, and OPPD
estimates that decommissioning costs could be reduced by US$200 million (i.e. a total cost
629 - Deutscher Bundestag, “Kernbrennstofffreiheit und Rückbau deutscher Atomkraftwerke”, Drucksache 19/6177, Antwort der
Bundesregierung auf die Kleine Anfrage 19/5710, Beantwortet vom Bundesministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz und nukleare
Sicherheit, 29 November 2018.
630 - Commission Locale d’Information des monts d’Arrée, “Réunion plénière de la CLI des monts d’Arrée du jeudi 5 juillet 2018“,Press Release, 17 July 2018 (in French), see https://www.finistere.fr/content/download/36289/573127/file/2018-07-17%20CP%20
Réunion%20plénière%20de%20la%20CLI%20des%20Monts%20d’Arrée%20du%205-07-2018.pdf, accessed 26 June 2019.
631 - Japan Times, “Japan Atomic Power considers launching unit that specializes in scrapping nuclear plants”, 16 April 2019,see https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2019/04/16/national/japan-atomic-power-considers-launching-unit-specializes-scrappingnuclear-plants/#.XRN1q498JO8, accessed 26 June 2019.
632 - EnergySolutions, “EnergySolutions Signs Japan Commercial Nuclear Reactor Decommissioning Agreement”, Press Release,
20 April 2016, see https://www.energysolutions.com/energysolutions-signs-japan-commercial-nuclear-reactor-decommissioningagreement/, accessed 26 June 2019.
633 - John Dillon, “Vermont Yankee transfer approved, Northstar will decommission plant”, Vermont Public Radio, 6 December 2018,see https://www.vpr.org/post/vermont-yankee-transfer-approved-northstar-will-decommission-plant, accessed 11 August 2019.
634 - U.S.NRC, “NRC Approves License Transfer for Vermont Yankee”, NRC News, No.18-047, 12 October 2018,see https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/news/2018/18-047.pdf, accessed 9 May 2019635 - WNN, “Accelerated decommissioning for Crystal River”, 31 May 2019,see http://world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Accelerated-decommissioning-for-Crystal-River, accessed 10 June 2019.
636 - WNN, “EnergySolutions to decommission Fort Calhoun”, 30 April 2019,see http://world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/EnergySolutions-to-decommission-Fort-Calhoun, accessed 9 May 2019.

| 160

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 of around US$1.1 billion or US$2,250/kW). Contrary to other cases, EnergySolutions does nottake over the license and the funds but OPPD retains full ownership, control and regulatory
accountability.637 EnergySolutions estimated that it will finish decommissioning Lacrosse andthe two Zion units in late 2019.638
The two units San Onofre-2 and -3 are not yet defueled but this is scheduled to be completed
by the end of 2019. Underground storage vaults were installed to this end. Defueling might
be delayed, however, as the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is currently evaluating
an incident at the station, where staff came close to dropping 18 feet (6 meters) a container
containing 50 tons of spent fuel. One canister got stuck and was not properly inserted,which the operator Southern California Edison (SCE) first failed to note; only after radiation
protection registered unusually high radiation was the problem realized and solved.639 SCE hascome under pressure recently with a San Diego attorney calling for criminal investigations
by the FBI640 and congressmen announcing new legislation amid serious environmental andsafety concerns.641
On 17 September 2018, Oyster Creek, a 619 MW GE BWR‑2 (Mark 1) reactor and the first“commercial” and then oldest reactor in the U.S., was closed after 49 years of operation,
11 years before its license expires in 2029. Exelon will now defuel the plant with plans to sell itto the newly created joint venture Comprehensive Decommissioning International consistingof Holtec International (U.S. waste management company) and SNC‑Lavalin (Canadianengineering company). The company plans to acquire the decommissioning licenses of two
Entergy reactors in the coming years: Pilgrim, closed on 31 May 2019 and Palisades, planned toclose definitely in 2022.642
Thus, of the ten reactors undergoing decommissioning, six were sold to decommissioning
companies, only four—the Humboldt Bay station and the San Onofre plant (three units)—were
not. As reported in WNISR2018, there is a need for a high level of scrutiny to these models, as
in most cases the decommissioning funds are also transferred to the new licensee. In the caseof Oyster Creek, the latest reported decommissioning fund contained US$888.5 million as oflate 2016 with a site‑specific cost estimate of around US$1,083 million for decommissioning
including spent fuel management.643 These developments are problematic as limited-liability
companies are only financially liable—in the case of an accident or other legal dispute—up
to the value of their assets. Therefore, if the decommissioning funds are exhausted, such athird‑party company could declare bankruptcy, leaving the bill to the taxpayer.
637 - OPPD, “OPPD Contracts with EnergySolutions to Support Nuclear Decommissioning”, 29 April 2019, see https://www.oppd.
com/news-resources/news-releases/2019/april/oppd-contracts-with-energysolutions-to-support-nuclear-decommissioning/,
accessed 9 May 2019.
638 - WNN, “EnergySolutions to decommission Fort Calhoun”, 30 April 2019.
639 - U.S.NRC, “Special Inspection Activities Regarding Cask Loading Misalignment”, Updated 2 August 2019, see https://www.nrc.
gov/reactors/operating/ops-experience/songs-spec-insp-activities-cask-loading-misalignment.html, accessed 11 August 2019.
640 - Alison St John, “Criminal Investigation Sought Into Nuclear Waste Handling At San Onofre”, kpbs, 2 January 2019,see https://www.kpbs.org/news/2019/jan/02/criminal-investigation-sought-nuclear-waste-handli, accessed 10 May 2019.
641 - abc7, “San Onofre nuclear power plant decommission under fire amid safety concerns”, 17 April 2019,see https://abc7.com/politics/san-onofre-nuclear-power-plant-decommission-safety-in-question/5255934/, accessed 10 May 2019.
642 - WNN, “Oyster Creek retires after 49 years”, 18 September 2018, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Oyster-Creekretires-after-49-years, accessed 26 June 2019.
643 - U.S.NRC, “2017 Decommissioning Funding Status Report for Operating Power Reactor Licenses (December 31, 2016)”,
21 August 2018, see https://www.nrc.gov/docs/ML1809/ML18096B543.pdf.

| 161

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 162

Table 11 | Update Decommissioning Status in Three Selected Countries

May 2018

May 2019

10

10
2b

10
4

20
0

26a
0

2015

6
1

May 2019

4
1

Japan

May 2018“Warm-up-stage”
of which defueled

Germany

May 2019

USA
May 2018

Status0“Hot-zone-stage”

0

0

3

4

4

0

0

“Ease-off-Stage”

5

5

9

8

8

0

0

“Long-Term Enclosure”

12

12

2

2

2

0

0

Finished

13

4

5

5

1

6

13
6

3

3

3

34

36

28

29

29

of which greenfield
Total Closed Reactors

1

1
1

25

27

Sources: compiled by WNISR, 2018, 2019

Notes
a – includes the four Fukushima Daini reactors, not included in 2018b - corrected from WNISR2018

CASE STUDIES: WESTERN EUROPE, CENTRALAND EASTERN EUROPE, AND ASIA
The following section provides an in-depth review of developments in five countries inWestern Europe, Central and Eastern Europe, and Asia with 19 closed reactors (6 PWR, 3 BWR,
2 GCR, 7 LWGR and 1 PHWR) in Spain, Italy, Lithuania, Russia, and South Korea. Together
with the six case studies reviewed in WNISR2018 and updated in WNSIR2019, we cover a
total of 159 closed reactors, representing almost 87 percent of the worldwide closed fleet. In
Spain, Italy, Lithuania, Russia, and the Republic of Korea 19 reactors are currently awaiting or
are in various stages of decommissioning, while none of the observed countries has yet fully
decommissioned one reactor. In Lithuania, an RBMK reactor is for the first time undergoing
decommissioning.

Spain
Decommissioning Monitoring
As of mid-2019, Spain had three closed reactors with a combined capacity of 1,067 MW. The
first was José Cabrera‑1, a 241 MW Westinghouse Pressurized Water Reactor or PWR (1‑Loop),which was closed in 2006. It was the first Spanish reactor to start and it operated for 37 years
east of Madrid. Decommissioning was started after a “transition period” in 2010. Between 2013
and 2015 Westinghouse performed the segmentation (underwater mechanical cutting) andpackaging of the reactor pressure vessel as well as the reactor internals.644 The vessel and someinternals were transported to the Cabril Waste Repository, while some internals are still stored

644 - Joseph Boucau, “Special Constraints During Reactor Dismantling Projects”, Westinghouse, Presentation at the 3rd World
Nuclear Decommissioning & Waste Management Congress (Europe), 18 September 2018.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 with the spent fuel on‑site in the interim storage facility.645 The reactor is currently in theease‑off‑stage and decommissioning is expected to be completed by 2020. The original budget
for decommissioning including site restoration was approximately €150 million or €1,400/
kW (US$169 million or US$1,600/kW).646 In 2016, the cost estimate for the project had nearly
doubled to around €259 million or €1,800/kW (US$292 million or US$2,100/kW).647
The second reactor to be decommissioning is Vandellos-1, a 480 MW GCR (or UNGG for
Uranium Naturel Graphite Gaz) designed and supplied by the French state agency CEA. The
GCR was operational from 1972 on and closed in 1990, following an incident in which one ofits turbo generators was damaged. The owner of Vandellos‑1, Hifrensa, defueled the reactor,
conditioned the operational wastes, and extracted the wastes from the graphite silos. After this,Enresa took over decommissioning in 1998 and removed unnecessary conventional structures.
The pressure vessel was confined and covered by a protective structure. Dismantling of thevessel and remaining internals is expected to begin in 2028, after an enclosure period of
25 years.648 At the lower floor of the reactor building a temporary graphite storage facility was
installed, where some 1,100 tons of graphite from the sleeves of the fuel used during operation
are stored.649 In 2018, a contract between Enresa and EDF was signed covering a four‑year
period of engineering support for the enclosure period, the contract includes the preparationof technical and licensing documentation.650 Although some decommissioning work was done,
WNISR considers the reactor as in Long Term Enclosure (LTE), as the main decommissioning
work will be carried out after an enclosure period of 25 years.
The third closed reactor is the GE BWR at the Santa Maria de Garoña station, which was
operational from 1971 until 2012. Iberdrola has no intentions of bringing the reactor backonline, as Garona is not economically viable, and the necessary investments were describedas potentially ruinous to the utility (see WNISR2018). The 446 MW BWR will now enter thedecommissioning stage. The operator, Nuclenor (a joint venture of Endesa and Iberdrola), will
have to defuel the reactor and transfer the spent fuel to the interim storage facility as wellas condition the operational wastes. Then, Enresa will take over the ownership of the plant.
Enresa estimates that decommissioning will take about ten years.651 The reactor is currently inthe “warm-up-stage”. Table 12 shows the current status of reactor decommissioning in Spain.

645 - Enresa, “Experiences and Lessons Learned: Jose Cabrera NPP Decommissioning Project”, Spanish Radioactive Waste
Management Agency, Spanish Ministry for the Ecological Transition, 23 January 2018,see https://ec.europa.eu/jrc/sites/jrcsh/files/experiences_and_lessons_learned_jose_cabrera_npp_decommissioning_project.pdf.
646 - Laura Gil, “Tying up loose ends: Spain’s successful decommissioning project”, IAEA Bulletin, 2016,see https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/5710607-spain.pdf, accessed 30 August 2019.
647 - NEA/OECD, “Costs of Decommissioning Nuclear Power Plants”, Nuclear Energy Agency, Organisation for Economic
Co‑operation and Development, OECD/NEA Publishing, NEA No.7201, 2016.
648 - Enresa, “Dismantling of the Vandellós I Nuclear Power Plant”, Undated, see http://www.enresa.es/eng/index/activities-andprojects/dismantling-and-environmental-restoration/dismantling-of-vandellos-i-nuclear-power-plant, accessed 30 April 2019.
649 - Enresa, “Vandellos I Nuclear Power Plant Decomissioning Report 1998-2003”, Empresa Nacional de Residuos Radiactivos, 2007.
650 - WNN, “Contract awarded for Vandellós 1 engineering support”, 22 February 2018,see http://world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Contract-awarded-for-Vandellos-1-engineering-suppo, accessed 30 April 2019.
651 - NEI, “Spain to close its oldest reactor”, 4 August 2017, see https://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsspain-to-close-its-oldestreactor-5891433, accessed 30 April 2019.

| 163

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 164

Table 12 | Current Status of Reactor Decommissioning in Spain (as of May 2019)
Spain“Warm-up-stage”
of which defueled

May 2019
10“Hot-zone-stage”

0“Ease-off-stage”

1

LTE

1

Finishedof which greenfield0

Total Closed Reactors

03

Sources: various, compiled by WNISR, 2019

Organizational Challenges
Spain has a national policy for decommissioning its reactors, which is specified by the official
government document, the periodically updated “General Radioactive Waste Plan”. In
this plan, all decommissioning and waste management activities are developed by Enresa.
While the long-term enclosure strategy is applied for the GCR Vandellos‑1, all Light Water
Reactors (LWRs) are bound to be immediately dismantled to a greenfield site. Spain describes
decommissioning and waste management as an essential public service and assigns these tasks
to the state-owned company Empresa Nacional de Residuos Radiactivos S.A. (Enresa).652 The
operator of the reactor is responsible for spent fuel, or must otherwise provide a spent fuelmanagement plan, as this task falls under activities prior to decommissioning (e.g. defuelingthe reactor, conditioning of operational wastes).653 Once these activities are completed, thedecommissioning plan set up by Enresa must be approved, before the site is temporarilytransferred to Enresa which then becomes the decommissioning licensee.654 In general, thistransition period of conditioning the waste, defueling the reactor and transferring the license
is expected to last three years, while the decommissioning works are estimated to last 10 years.
Although this seems short compared to the average of 19 years for decommissioned reactors,
if Enresa did finish the ease-off stage of the José Cabrera‑1 reactor by 2020, decommissioning
would indeed have lasted only 10 years. When decommissioning is complete and the “Closure
Declaration” has been issued by the regulatory body—the Nuclear Safety Council or CSN655—
the site will be returned to its former owner.656
Enresa is also responsible for managing the funds and liabilities for decommissioning. The
external segregated fund is fed by two fees, the rate of which is regulated. The first fee isincluded in the electricity prices and used to finance waste management decommissioning
652 - By Article 38 bis of Law 25/1964 of the Nuclear Energy Act.
653 - IAEA, “Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management—
Sixth Spanish National Report”, Report drafted by the Spanish Ministry of Energy, Tourism and the Digital Agenda, the Nuclear
Safety Council, the Spanish Radioactive Waste Management Agency, and the Spanish Electrical Industry Association, October 2017,see https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/national_report_of_spain_for_the_6th_review_meeting_-_english.pdf, accessed
11 August 2019.
654 - Ibidem.
655 - CSN stands for Consejo de Seguridad Nuclear.
656 - Nuclear Energy Agency, “Radioactive Waste Management and Decommissioning in Spain”, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, October 2018, see https://www.oecd-nea.org/rwm/profiles/Spain_report.pdf, accessed 11 August 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 activities for those reactors closed prior to 2010 (José Cabrera and Vandellos‑1). The second fee
is for the reactors that were operating beyond 2010 and stems from the income from operating
the reactors.657 After decommissioning starts, there are no more payments to the fund andin the case of a shortfall, it would be the full responsibility of the decommissioning licensee
Enresa and hence the taxpayer to cover these costs.658

Italy
Decommissioning Monitoring
Following a referendum on the use of nuclear power in November 1987, triggered by the
Chernobyl accident in April 1986, Italy no longer generated nuclear electricity.659 The
Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) Enrico Fermi (Trino) produced its last kilowatt-hours in
March 1987, the GCR Latina and the BWR Caorso in 1986 and the BWR Garigliano in 1978.
Caorso is the only larger BWR (860 MW) Italy has to dismantle. The construction projects
for the Heavy Water Light Water Reactor (HWLWR) Cirene and the two Boiling Water
Reactors (BWRs) at Montalto Di Castro were mothballed after the referendum.
In 2017, Italy estimated the cost to decommission the four reactors that did operate and theconsequent waste management at €7.2 billion (US$8.1 billion).660 While this estimate does notinclude the disposal of high-level waste, it takes into account interim storage as well as thedisposal of low- and intermediate-level waste. The estimate has almost doubled since 2004,
when the total estimate was around €4 billion (US$4.5 billion), and more than tripled since
the closure of the reactors, when decommissioning of the four reactors was projected to cost
€2 billion (US$2.3 billion).661 In 2004, it was estimated that Sogin (Società Gestione Impianti
Nucleari SpA)662 would decommission the four reactors by 2024.663 Although Italy has only four
units to dismantle, they have to deal with all three major reactor types.
The decommissioning license for Enrico Fermi (Trino) was issued in 2012; although,prior to this, some dismantling activities were already carried out, e.g. demolishment of
the cooling towers, decontamination of the steam generators and dismantling of turbine
components. Since 2015, the spent fuel pools have been defueled. Enrico Fermi is currently in
657 - IAEA, “Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management—Sixth
Spanish National Report”, Report drafted by the Spanish Ministry of Energy, Tourism and the Digital Agenda, the Nuclear Safety
Council, the Spanish Radioactive Waste Management Agency, and the Spanish Electrical Industry Association, October 2017.
658 - NEA/OECD, “Costs of Decommissioning Nuclear Power Plants”, OECD/NEA Publishing, NEA No.7201, 2016, op. cit.
659 - WNISR considers the day of the last electricity generation as the closure date.
660 - David Dalton, “Italy’s €7.2 Billion Decommissioning Cost Estimate Is Robust And Thorough, Says IAEA”, NucNet,
21 September 2017, see https://www.nucnet.org/all-the-news/2017/09/21/italy-s-7-2-billion-decommissioning-cost-estimate-is-robustand-thorough-says-iaea, accessed 3 May 2019.
661 - Wolfgang Irrek et al., “Comparison among different decommissioning funds methodologies for nuclear installations—Country
Report Italy”, Final Report, Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy, on behalf of the Directorate‑General Energy& Transport of the European Commission, 2007, see https://epub.wupperinst.org/frontdoor/deliver/index/docId/2596/file/2596_
EUDecommFunds_IT.pdf, accessed 11 August 2019.
662 - Sogin is the Italian state-owned company responsible for the decommissioning of Italian nuclear plants and the management ofradioactive waste.
663 - Wolfgang Irrek et al., “Comparison among different decommissioning funds methodologies for nuclear installations—
Country Report Italy”, Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy, on behalf of the DG Energy & Transport of the
EU‑Commission, 2007.

| 165

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 166

the “warm‑up-stage” and Sogin expects to conclude decommissioning by 2031.664 The waste
generated during operation as well as from decommissioning are stored on-site awaiting the
opening of the national repository.
The pools of Garigliano have been defueled since 1987, when the last fuel elements were sent
for reprocessing to the U.K. or for storage to the centralized interim storage facility Avogadroin Saluggia. The decommissioning license for Garigliano was issued in 2012, although Sogin
has carried out some decommissioning work since 2000, e.g. demolition of the chimney anddecontamination of the internal systems. In 2012, calls for tender were issued for dismantling
the internal systems of the reactor and turbine buildings and Garigliano should soon enter the“hot-zone-stage”. Sogin expects to conclude decommissioning by 2026.665 The waste generated
during operation as well as from decommissioning are stored on-site until a national repository
opens.
The decommissioning license for Caorso was issued in 2014. As for the other light water
reactors, some dismantling works have been carried out prior to the issuing of the license, inthe case of Caorso since 2004, e.g. decontamination works, demolition of the auxiliary cooling
towers, underwater decontamination and extraction of the contaminated materials in theplant’s pool. The reactor has been defueled since 2010, when the spent fuel was sent to France
for reprocessing. Caorso is currently in the “warm-up-stage” and Sogin expects to conclude
decommissioning by 2031.666
Table 13 | Current Status of Reactor Decommissioning in Italy (as of May 2019)
Italy“Warm-up-stage”
of which defueled

May 2019
44“Hot-zone-stage”

0“Ease-off-stage”

0

LTE

0

Finished

0of which greenfield

Total Closed Reactors

04

Sources: various, compiled by WNISR, 2019

The only GCR in Italy, Latina, has been defueled in the early 1990s and the spent fuel sent
to the U.K. for reprocessing. The decommissioning license for Latina was expected in 2018
but had not yet been granted as of mid‑2019. Since 2006, some decommissioning works havebeen carried out, e.g. dismantling of the upper pipelines of the primary circuit, dismantlingof the turbine and of the building. Sogin currently expects to finish decommissioning up

664 - Sogin, “Trino nuclear power plant Vercelli - Decommissioning”, 2019, see https://www.sogin.it/en/
closureoftheitaliannuclearcycle/italian-nuclear-sites/trinonuclearpowerplant/Pagine/default.aspx, accessed 6 May 2019.
665 - Sogin, “Garigliano nuclear power plant Caserta - Decommissioning”, 2019, see https://www.sogin.it/en/
closureoftheitaliannuclearcycle/italian-nuclear-sites/gariglianonuclearpowerplant/Pagine/default.aspx, accessed 6 May 2019.
666 - Sogin, “Caorso nuclear power plant Pacenza - Decommissioning”, 2019, see https://www.sogin.it/en/about-us/environmentalremediation-of-nuclear-sites/where-we-are/caorso-nuclear-power-plant-%e2%80%93-piacenza.html, accessed 6 May 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

to the brownfield stage with waste storage on-site by 2027.667 Then it will start with thedecommissioning of the reactor building until it reaches the stage of greenfield site. As withall of the other reactors, wastes are currently stored on-site, but the GCR Latina depends morethan any other reactor on the opening of a national repository as the dismantling of the reactor
will produce around 2,000 tons of highly radioactive graphite. Table 13 shows the current
status of reactor decommissioning in Italy.

Organizational Challenges
In 1999, the state-owned Sogin (Società Gestione Impianti Nucleari SpA) was establishedduring the privatization process of Enel with the task to decommission Italy’s nuclear
power plants as well as finding a national waste storage site. The shareholder of Sogin is the
Ministry of Economy and Finance, while the strategic and operational directives come from
the Ministry of Economic Development. At the same time, the initial strategy of long‑term
enclosure was changed to immediate dismantling. As there is no disposal facility available,
the national decommissioning strategy is divided into two distinct phases with an estimatedendpoint set at 2035:
ɆɆ First phase: Decommissioning up to brownfield level: dismantling and waste treatment
activities have been completed and the waste is stored on-site. The duration of this phasedepends on the availability of the disposal facility.
ɆɆ Second phase: Decommissioning of the reactor itself up to greenfield level: transferal of all
the wastes to the repository and release of the site from regulatory control.
Italian legislation allows to authorize specific dismantling activities before the overall
decommissioning plan is approved, if these activities benefit safety and radiation protection,some of which are underway (e.g., decontamination works, conditioning, construction ofinterim storages).668 In 2018, Sogin signed a €28 million (US$31.6 million) contract with
Cyclife, an EDF subsidiary, for waste treatment for three reactors worth.669 As opposition to
on‑site interim storage of spent fuel was strong, Italy signed an agreement with France to send
its 235 tons of spent fuel to France for reprocessing. Shipments from Caorso were completed in
2010, those from Enrico Fermi in 2015. All of the fuel has been reprocessed at the Orano plantat La Hague. High- and intermediate-level waste will have to be returned to Italy.
Until 1987, during the operation of the nuclear power plants, the operator ENEL set aside
internal, non-segregated funds. The early closure of the reactors prevented the operator ofaccumulating the total and needed amount of decommissioning funding. The funds, around€800 million (US$904 million), were transferred to Sogin after its creation in 1999; they werepart in cash and assets and part in credits from the public entity CCSE670, a national fund that667 - Sogin, “Latina nuclear power plant Latina - Decommissioning”, 2019, see https://www.sogin.it/en/closureoftheitaliannuclearcycle/
italian-nuclear-sites/latinanuclearpowerplant/Pagine/default.aspx, accessed 21 August 2019.
668 - ISPRA, “Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management—
Fifth Italian National Report”, Joint Report, National Centre for Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection of the Institute for theEnvironmental Protection and Research, on behalf of the Italian Government, October 2017, see https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/
files/6rm-italy.pdf, accessed 12 August 2019.
669 - WNN, “EDF subsidiary wins Italian waste reduction contract”, 7 February 2018,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/EDF-subsidiary-wins-Italian-waste-reduction-contra, accessed 6 May 2019.
670 - CCSE which stands for La Cassa conguaglio per il settore elettrico, is now Cassa per i servizi energetici e ambientali, or CSEA.

| 167

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 pays for all decommissioning costs occurring at Sogin.671 Since then, decommissioning funds
are accumulated through a levy on the electricity price at a level set by the electricity market
regulator.672 The levy is allocated by the distribution companies and transferred bimonthly
to the national fund. The levy and the decommissioning programs are reviewed every threemonths and any decommissioning shortfall is addressed by adjusting the levy on the electricity
bill.673 CSEA supposedly pays all decommissioning costs of Sogin, but independent experts
highlight that it is not transparent how much money has already been paid to Sogin in total.674
The resources are still held in internal and unrestricted funds, only they are now in state hands
and money has been partly used for purposes of public interest other than decommissioning;
the state is free to use the money being paid to CCSE for any purpose. However, in the end thestate and hence the taxpayer remains responsible for all decommissioning and waste disposal
costs.

Lithuania
Decommissioning Monitoring
Lithuania operated two Soviet-Style RBMK‑1500 reactors at the Ignalina station. The two
1,185 MW (each) reactors were closed in 2004 and 2009 as a requirement for Lithuania to join
the European Union. The two reactor cores are defueled, but the spent fuel in the pools has
not yet been evacuated as the interim storage facility is delayed by more than 10 years.675 The
transferal of all spent fuel to the on-site dry interim‑storage facility is a prerequisite for thedecommissioning license.676 Although no license has yet been granted, decommissioning work
(e.g., in the turbine building or auxiliary buildings) is being carried out. All the hot-zone work
still lies ahead and even plans for the dismantling of the reactor cores or primary circuit have
not yet been completed, 18 years after closure.677 The decommissioning end date has, since2011, been postponed by further 9 years to 2038. It is planned to decommission Ignalina to“brownfield” status.678 Table 14 shows the current status of reactor decommissioning in
Lithuania.

671 - Wolfgang Irrek et al., “Comparison among different decommissioning funds methodologies for nuclear installations—Country
Report Italy”, Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy, on behalf of the Directorate‑General Energy & Transport of
the European Commission, 2007, see https://epub.wupperinst.org/frontdoor/deliver/index/docId/2596/file/2596_EUDecommFunds_
IT.pdf, accessed 11 August 2019.
672 - NEA/OECD, “Costs of Decommissioning Nuclear Power Plants”, OECD/NEA Publishing, NEA No.7201, 2016, op. cit.
673 - Ibidem.
674 - Wolfgang Irrek et al., “Comparison among different decommissioning funds methodologies for nuclear installations—Country
Report Italy”, Final Report, Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy, on behalf of the Directorate‑General Energy &Transport of the European Commission, 2007, op. cit.
675 - ENSREG, “Lithuania”, Updated 6 February 2019, see http://www.ensreg.eu/country-profile/Lithuania, accessed 20 June 2019.
676 - Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant, “The list of documents of the State Enterprise Ignalina NPP required to issue a license fordecommissioning and the schedule for their submission were agreed”, 6 December 2018, see https://www.iae.lt/en/the-list-ofdocuments-of-the-state-enterprise-ignalina-npp-required-to-issue-a-license-for-decommissioning-and-the-schedule-for-theirsubmission-were-agreed/323, accessed 20 June 2019.
677 - European Court of Auditors, “EU nuclear decommissioning assistance programmes in Lithuania, Bulgaria and Slovakia:
some progress made since 2011, but critical changes ahead”, Special Report, No.22, 2016, see https://www.eca.europa.eu/Lists/
ECADocuments/SR16_22/SR_NUCLEAR_DECOMMISSIONING_EN.pdf, accessed 12 August 2019.
678 - Ibidem.

| 168

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 169

Table 14 | Current Status of Reactor Decommissioning in Lithuania (as of May 2019)
Lithuania“Warm-up-stage”
of which defueled

May 2019
20“Hot-zone-stage”

0“Ease-off-stage”

0

LTE

0

Finished

0of which greenfield

Total Closed Reactors

02

Sources: various, compiled by WNISR, 2019

Funding Challenges
Due to high decommissioning costs and the fear of rising electricity prices, the EU decided
to financially support decommissioning in Lithuania until 2020. Starting in 1999, the EU
had already provided financial and technical assistance to EU candidate countries under
the PHARE program.679 The European Commission entrusts budget implementation
to the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). With the IgnalinaInternational Decommissioning Support Fund (IIDSF), the EU committed to assist Lithuania
in implementing decommissioning, with specific emphasis on managing radiological safety
challenges. The EU covers more than half of the costs for the decommissioning of Ignalina.
A 2016 report by the European Court of Auditors concluded that the EU funding programsfor decommissioning have not created the right incentives for timely and cost-effective
decommissioning. The auditors conclude that the funding programs should be discontinued
after 2020, when EU support for Lithuania will have totaled €1.8 billion (US$2 billion).680
Between 2010 and 2015, costs increased by 67 percent to an estimated total of €3.4 billion(US$3.8 billion) and, as of 2015, the country faced a financing gap of €1.6 billion (US$1.8 billion).
If high-level waste management and spent fuel disposal were included, the total costs were
estimated at €6 billion (US$6.8 billion) and the financing gap would more than double to€4.2 billion (US$4.7 billion).681
Actual decommissioning work is carried out by the state enterprise INPP (Ignalina Nuclear
Power Plant). Further delays are likely, as the construction of the above-surface facility forlow- and medium-level wastes is still in the design phase, while the buffer storage facility was
already 80 percent full in 2015. In addition, Lithuania faces a lack of qualified engineers fordecommissioning, as this is the first RBMK decommissioning project anywhere; qualified
international experts are also missing.

679 - In addition, the Central Project Management Agency, a national public‑sector body, acts as a second implementing body, andperforms the same functions as the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).
680 - European Court of Auditors, “EU nuclear decommissioning assistance programmes in Lithuania, Bulgaria and Slovakia: some
progress made since 2011, but critical changes ahead”, Special Report, No.22, 2016.
681 - Ibidem.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

RussiaDecommissioning Monitoring
As of mid-2019, Russia had eight closed reactors with a combined capacity of 2,107 MW
consisting of two different reactor types: five first-generation light-water gas-cooled reactors(LWGR)—among them one Chernobyl-style reactor—and three Soviet-style Pressurized
Water Reactors (PWRs).
In 1983, Russia officially closed its first reactor with Beloyarsk-1, a 102 MW LWGR (AMB‑100),
19 years after it was first connected to the grid. The closure of Beloyarsk‑2, a 146 MW LWGR,
followed seven years later in 1990 after 23 years of operation. The two reactors were defueled
and put into long-term enclosure.682 At the same site, the only two Russian Fast Breeder
Reactors (FBRs) remain in operation.
Two Soviet-style PWRs, Unit 1 (197 MW) and 2 (336 MW) of Novovoronezh were closed
in 1988 and 1990 respectively. In 2011, the preparation for the long-term enclosure started.
Although some equipment was already dismantled in the machinery hall, actual dismantlingwork was planned to start in 2055 and be completed in 2060.683 Spent fuel pools have been
dismantled, as the station has an operating independent storage facility.684 As this constitutes
the first Russian VVER decommissioning project, Rosatom created a pilot and demonstrationengineering center for decommissioning at the site to test and probe decommissioning
technologies.685 In 2016, Unit 3, the first VVER-440 was closed, four months after
Novovoronezh 2‑1 was connected to the grid. The reactor had been operational for 45 years,
15 years longer than originally envisaged.686 In 2017, the head of decommissioning of Rosatom
announced at a forum that the immediate dismantling strategy would bring decommissioning
cost down by 20 percent; this might mean that decommissioning could be accelerated for
economic reasons.687 However, in 2019, it is still unclear if the strategy will be long-term
enclosure or immediate dismantling. Therefore, the reactors are classified as LTE as long as
there is no clear evidence of decommissioning progress.
APS-1 Obninsk was the first European reactor and often described as the worldwide firstreactor for commercial production of electricity. The reactor is located at the Obninsk Institutefor Nuclear Power Engineering, which was turned into a museum. In 2002, the 5 MW LWGR
AM‑1 reactor was closed after 48 years of operation. Six years later, in 2008, the reactor was
682 - Oskar Njaa, Nils Bøhmer and Charles Digges, “Russian Nuclear Power 2018”, Bellona, 2018,see https://network.bellona.org/content/uploads/sites/2/2018/08/Russian-Nuclear-Power-2018.pdf, accessed 12 August 2019.
683 - Artem Izmestev, “Russian Strategy for Decommissioning of NPPs”, presented at the International Conference on Nuclear
Decommissioning, 18 May 2015.
684 - Russian Federation, “The Fifth National Report of the Russian Federation on Compliance with the Obligations of the Joint
Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management”, Drafted by Rosatom, theFederal Environmental, Industrial and Nuclear Supervision Service, the Nuclear Safety Institute of the Russian Academy of Science,and the Federal State-Funded Institution Scientific and Engineering Center for Nuclear and Radiation Safety, Prepared for the Sixth
Review Meeting of the Joint Convention, IAEA, 2017, see https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/russian-federation-eng-jc.pdf,
accessed 12 August 2019.
685 - Artem Izmestev, “Russian Strategy for Decommissioning of NPPs”, presented at the International Conference on Nuclear
Decommissioning, 18 May 2015.
686 - Charles Digges, “Russia’s first VVER-440 reactor shuts for decommissioning”, Bellona, 12 January 2017,see https://bellona.org/news/nuclear-issues/2017-01-russias-first-vver-440-reactor-shuts-for-decommissioning, accessed 26 June 2019.
687 - Oskar Njaa, Nils Bøhmer and Charles Digges, “Russian Nuclear Power 2018”, Bellona, 2018, op. cit.

| 170

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

defueled but no information is given on the amount and condition of the stored spent fuel.
Decommissioning is expected to last until 2080 and is “hobbled by bumbling secrecy”; in
addition, it turned out at a public hearing that the company that owns the reactor does nothave a decommissioning license.688 Considering the very distant decommissioning completiondate, the WNISR classifies the reactor as LTE.
Leningrad-1 was the first RBMK-1000 reactor. The 925 MW LWGR was closed on
22 December 2018 after 45 years of operation. All NPPs with RMBK1000 reactors have
independent storage facilities689 and defueling is estimated to last until 2023.690 The RBMK
reactors were not constructed with decommissioning in mind and the 2000 tons of heavy
graphite stacks, where fuel is fed into via channels, pose particular technological challenges.
How to safely dismantle the graphite seems unanswered, not only in Russia but worldwide.
It is estimated that decommissioning will last at least 50 years and dismantling all four
reactors at the Leningrad station would cost around US$820 million.691 This figure is of course
highly speculative and seems an underestimate, especially if compared to the two reactors
in Lithuania, where the estimated costs have increased by 67 percent in the last five years tomore than €3 billion (US$3.7 billion) for just two reactors. The remaining three RBMK‑1000
reactors at the Leningrad station are expected to be closed between 2021 and 2026.692 The only
comparable project in Russia is the decommissioning of the five graphite moderated plutonium
production reactors at the Mayak site, where, according to leaked documents, Russia intends tobury these reactors onsite, rather than dismantling and safely managing the graphite stacks.693
In January 2019, decommissioning of Bilibino, a small 11 MW light-water gas-cooled
reactor, was approved after it had remained shut down since March 2018. WNISR classifies
the reactor as LTE, unless contradicting evidence emerges, considering the anticipated longdecommissioning duration of 50 years and the fact that the dominating strategy for graphitemoderated reactors in the world is LTE.

Organizational Challenges
In Russia, enterprises and organizations are expected to have earmarked finances tocover the costs associated with decommissioning; for this purpose “special reserve funds”
were established within the state corporation Rosatom.694 Information about the Russian
688 - Charles Digges, “Russia’s decommissioning of historic reactor hobbled by bumbling secrecy”, Bellona, 12 April 2018,see https://bellona.org/news/nuclear-issues/2018-04-russias-decommissioning-of-historic-reactor-hobbled-by-bumbling-secrecy,
accessed 26 June 2019.
689 - Russian Federation, “The Fifth National Report of the Russian Federation on Compliance with the Obligations of the Joint
Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management”, Prepared for the Sixth Review
Meeting of the Joint Convention, IAEA, 2017.
690 - Charles Digges, “Russia retires Reactor No 1 at the Leningrad nuclear plant”, Bellona, 9 January 2019,see https://bellona.org/news/nuclear-issues/2019-01-russia-retires-reactor-no-1-at-the-leningrad-nuclear-plant, accessed 26 June 2019.
691 - Charles Digges, “Decommissioning Russia’s RBMK reactors by waiting for better days”, Bellona, 14 January 2019, see http://
bellona.org/news/nuclear-issues/2019-01-decommissioning-russias-rbmk-reactors-by-waiting-for-better-days, accessed 15 January 2019.
692 - NEI, “What’s next for Leningrad?”, see https://www.neimagazine.com/features/featurewhats-next-for-leningrad-7183813/,
accessed 12 July 2019.
693 - Charles Digges, “Decommissioning Russia’s RBMK reactors by waiting for better days”, Bellona, 14 January 2019, op. cit.
694 - Russian Federation, “The Fifth National Report of the Russian Federation on Compliance with the Obligations of the Joint
Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management”, Prepared for the Sixth Review
Meeting of the Joint Convention, IAEA, 2017.

| 171

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

decommissioning fund has been inconclusive and contradictory; the terms “reserve” and“funds” have different institutional components.695 The first phase of decommissioning
regulation started in 1995, under Boris Yeltsin, with the adaptation of the Russian Federation
Law on the use of nuclear energy. With this the responsibility for establishing a system
for financing decommissioning was assigned to the government and the organization of
decommissioning to the operating utility, i.e. Rosatom, who should also create a fund within
its budget for decommissioning.696 In 2002, it was established that Rosatom should transfer
money to a “reserve” and that this amount should be 1.3 percent of the gross income generated
by the sale of electricity. Independent experts argue that the substitution of the word ‘fund’ by‘reserve’ may lead to a weaker control of how Rosatom can manage the allocated finances.697
In addition, money flow into the fund for decommissioning also comes from regional andfederal budget sources, but it is unclear how much.698 As only 8 of the 43 operational andclosed reactors started operation after 2002, the majority of the reactors did not generate
allocations to decommissioning themselves, and money from the reserves is already spent oncurrent decommissioning projects, though it is not clear how much.699 In 2012, the percentageof revenues that has to be put aside into the funds was increased to 3.2 percent.700 Accordingto Rosatom, around €160 million (US$182 million) were accumulated in the fund by 2015.701 To
put the amount into perspective, this is roughly a fifth of the estimated decommissioning costs
for the four Leningrad reactors. In addition, if the numbers from Lithuania’s Ignalina site aretaken as reference, the decommissioning of the four Leningrad RBMKs will cost more likely
around €6 billion (US$6.7 billion). It is obvious that in addition to technological challenges withdismantling, Russia has not set aside appropriate finances for decommissioning and heavily
underestimates decommissioning costs. It is unclear how Russia will handle this challenge inthe future. One way out would be the long-term enclosure of the closed reactors, while otherunits still generate income. A much riskier strategy that Russia has apparently adopted consistsin the building of new reactors dedicated to generate income to replace ageing, life-extended
units,702 pushing the financing challenge further into the future.

South Korea
Decommissioning Monitoring
South Korea is operating a large nuclear program, including 26 power reactors. As of mid‑2019,two commercial reactors had been closed: South Korea’s oldest unit Kori-1 (576 MW) was taken

695 - Kjersti Album et al., “Report 2006—Status of Russia’s decommission fund”, Decommission, Green World, Naturvernforbundet/
Friend of the Earth Norway, et al., May 2006.
696 - Ibidem.
697 - Ibidem.
698 - Ibidem.
699 - Kjersti Album, et al., “How to pay?—Financing decommissioning of nuclear power plants”, Naturvernforbundet/Friends of the
Earth Norway, May 2017, see https://naturvernforbundet.no/getfile.php/13122760/Bilder/International%20projects/Report%20How%20
To%20Pay%202017.pdf, accessed 26 June 2019.
700 - Ibidem.
701 - Ibidem.
702 - Oskar Njaa, Nils Bøhmer and Charles Digges, “Russian Nuclear Power 2018”, Bellona, 2018, op. cit.

| 172

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

offline in June 2017, and Wolsong‑1, that ceased operation in May 2017, officially terminated its
commercial operation in June 2018.703
In 2016, the operator Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power (KHNP) submitted an application todecommission Kori-1, the first reactor to enter the decommissioning phase in the country. A
final and detailed decommissioning plan is being developed and has to be submitted by KHNP
to the regulator by 2021. In June 2018, the decision was taken to close Wolsong‑1, which had
not generated power since 2017 (see South Korea Focus for details).
Decommissioning of Kori-1 is estimated to start in mid-2022, last until 2032, and costaround US$570 million or US$990/kW.704 According to the Moon administration’s policy,
South Korea will implement a nuclear phase-out policy in the long run. Existing capacity will
not be extended after the completion of the units under construction and operating licenses
not be granted beyond a reactor’s design lifetime. Kori-2 is the next unit to be closed in 2023,
followed by nine additional ones prior to 2030 (see Table 6). In the next decades, South Korea
is expected to build up its own decommissioning industry. Meanwhile, the Korean Atomic
Energy Research Institute (KAERI) is taking steps to enhance decommissioning expertise anda series of contracts were signed to develop suitable technologies.

CONCLUSION ON REACTOR DECOMMISSIONING
Decommissioning is only at its very beginnings. Assuming a 40-year average lifetime, a further
207 reactors will close by 2030 (reactors connected to the grid between 1979 and 1990);
and an additional 125 will be closed by 2059; this does not even account for the 85 reactors
which started operating before 1979, additional 28 reactors in Long-term Outage (LTO) and
46 units under construction as of mid‑2019. Around 60 percent of the closed reactors arelocated in Europe (85 in Western Europe and 23 in Central & Eastern Europe), followed by
North America (42 reactors), and Asia (31 reactors). As of the first quarter of 2019, 162 units
are globally awaiting or in various stages of decommissioning, eight more than in the firstquarter of 2018. No reactor completed decommissioning worldwide since WNISR2018. Still,
only 19 reactors, with a capacity of 6 GW were fully decommissioned. The average duration of
the decommissioning process, independent of the chosen strategy, is around 19 years. Again, of
these 19 reactors only 10 have been released as so-called greenfield sites.
Around three-quarters of the closed reactors are in the three major reactor technology streams:
Pressurized Water Reactor, Boiling Water Reactor and Gas-Cooled Reactor. Not one graphitemoderated reactor has yet been decommissioned (see case studies on France and the U.K. in
WNISR2018); this also holds true for Light Water Cooled and Graphite Moderated Reactors
such as the Chernobyl-type RBMK. How to safely dismantle graphite reactors has yet to be
demonstrated, not only in Russia but worldwide. The internationally preferred strategy is longterm enclosure, although some countries, including Italy and Lithuania, appear to be opting for
immediate dismantling. This remains to be seen, as the reactors are still in the warm-up stage
and the Ignalina reactors in Lithuania are not even yet fully defueled.
703 - KHNP, “Nuclear Power Operation - Plant Status”, 31 December 2018,see http://cms.khnp.co.kr/eng/content/529/main.do?mnCd=EN03020101, accessed 27 March 2019.
704 - Jane Chung, “South Korea to complete dismantling of oldest nuclear reactor by 2032”, Reuters, 19 June 2017,see https://www.reuters.com/article/us-southkorea-nuclear-idUSKBN19A02R, accessed 26 June 2019.

| 173

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 174

The U.S. is still the most advanced in decommissioning reactors but since last year there wasno tangible progress. A new organizational model of selling decommissioning licenses to acontractor is gaining popularity. Of the ten reactors undergoing decommissioning in 2019, amajority of six were sold to decommissioning companies. The waste management company
EnergySolutions seems to be involved in most if not in all U.S. decommissioning projects
and plans to enter the Japanese market. Limited-liability decommissioning companies appear
to operate according to business incentives that are starting to attract regulatory and legal
attention.
In Spain, a national policy is in place and a public enterprise is taking over decommissioning
and managing the funds. With one reactor in the ease-off stage, Spain is close to finishing
one decommissioning project. While 30 years after abandoning nuclear, Italy is just starting
decommissioning. Since closure, cost estimates have increased threefold. In Lithuania, theEuropean Union is covering more than half of the costs for the worldwide first decommissioningof RBMK reactors. A report by the European Court of Auditors concludes that the EU funding
programs for decommissioning have not created the right incentives for timely and costeffective decommissioning and that the funding programs should be discontinued after 2020.
As other early nuclear countries France, Canada, and the UK, Russia has not yet decommissioned
one single reactor (see overview in Table 15). Overall decommissioning experience seems
to be scarce, as apparently all Russian closed reactors are going into long-term enclosure.
Russia especially faces challenges concerning the decommissioning of its 11 RBMK reactors.
Information about the Russian decommissioning fund has been inconclusive and contradictory.
Table 15 | Overview of Reactor Decommissioning in 11 Selected Countries (as of May 2019)
Country

ClosedReactors

Decommissioning ProcessWarm-up

Hot Zone

Ease-off

LTE

Completed

Canada

6

0

0

0

6

0

France

12

3

1

0

8

0

Germany

29

10

4

8

2

5 [17%]

Japan

27

26

0

0

0

1 [4%]

United Kingdom

30

0

0

0

30

0

USA

36

6

0

5

12

13 [36%]

Spain

3

1

0

1

1

0

Italy

4

4

0

0

0

0

Lithuania

2

2

0

0

0

0

Russia

8

0

0

0

8

0

South Korea

2

2

0

0

0

0

159

54

5

14

67

19

Total

Sources: various, compiled by WNISR, 2019

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 175

POTENTIAL NEWCOMER
COUNTRIESOn 26 June 1954, the Obninsk reactor in Russia became the first nuclear reactor connected toa grid to supply electricity. By 1985, 20 additional countries generated power by nuclear fission
and 65 years after the first one, only 31 ountries host power reactors—16 percent of the United
Nations’ 193 Member States. Only four new countries (Mexico, China, Romania, Iran) started
up power reactors over the past 30 years, while three (Italy, Kazakhstan and Lithuania) haveclosed down their programs (see Figure 1).
Nuclear power continues to be slowly deployed or developed in a number of additional countries
for the first time. The World Nuclear Association (WNA) suggests that there are 30 countries
in which nuclear energy is being considered, planned or being built for the first time, with anadditional 20 countries that have “at some time” expressed an interest in developing nuclear
power. The WNA further categorizes those countries in which nuclear power is being planned
into five separate groups705:
ɆɆ Power reactors under construction: Bangladesh, Belarus, Turkey and United ArabEmirates (UAE).
ɆɆ Contracts signed, legal and regulatory infrastructure well-developed or developing:
Lithuania, Poland and Vietnam (but deferred).
ɆɆ Committed plans, legal and regulatory infrastructure developing: Egypt and Jordan.
ɆɆ Well-developed plans but commitment pending: Kazakhstan, Indonesia, Thailand,
Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan; or commitment stalled: Italy.
ɆɆ Developing plans: Israel, Nigeria, Kenya, Laos, Malaysia, Morocco, Algeria.
The main difference from previous years is that the WNA has removed Chile from the list of
countries with well-developed plans and added Uzbekistan.
This section of the report will look at the countries where the WNA considers nuclear plans areat least “well developed”. The WNA-classification is debatable, as can be seen in the analysis
hereunder.

705 - WNA, “Emerging Nuclear Energy Countries - New Nuclear Build Countries”, March 2019, see http://www.world-nuclear.org/
information-library/country-profiles/others/emerging-nuclear-energy-countries.aspx, accessed 18 April 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

UNDER CONSTRUCTION
Bangladesh
On 30 November 2017, Bangladesh officially began construction of the first unit of the Rooppur
nuclear plant.706 Unit 1 is scheduled to begin operation in 2023 followed by unit 2 in 2024.707
The construction license for Unit 2 was granted in July 2018.708 The idea of building nuclear
reactors at Rooppur goes back to even before Bangladesh became an independent country,
to a 1963 plan by the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) to build one reactor inWest Pakistan and one in East Pakistan, as Bangladesh was then called.709
The current reactor deal dates back to November 2011 when the Bangladeshi Government
announced that it was prepared to sign a deal with the Russian Government for two
1,000 MW units—the first of which was to start up between 2017 and 2018—at a total cost of
US$1.5–2 billion.710 Since then, although negotiations have reportedly been ongoing, the startup date has been continually postponed and the expected construction cost has risen sharply.
By 2015, the Bangladeshi Finance Minister was quoted as saying the project was then expected
to cost US$12.65 billion.711 However, even this is not likely to be the final cost with suggestions
that this is not a fixed-price contract, but a “cost-plus-fee” contract, so “the vendor has theright to come up with any cost escalation (plus their profit margin) to be incorporated into thecontract amount” and that the eventual cost of generating power would be “at least 60 percent
higher than the present retail cost” of electricity in Bangladesh.712 The size of the loan isextremely large and is roughly half of Bangladesh’s outstanding external debt, estimated at
US$26 billion, to which the nuclear debt will be added.713
If and when completed, the reactors would have a major impact on the electricity supply mix inthe country, whose installed capacity in 2018 was about 16 GW.
The December 2015 agreement was said to be signed between the Bangladesh Atomic Energy
Commission (BAEC) and Rosatom for 2.4 GW of capacity, with work then expected to begin
in 2016 and operation to start in 2022 and 2023.714 According to the deal, Russia would provide
706 - WNISR, “Construction Start at First Nuclear Power Plant in Bangladesh”, 2 December 2017,see https://www.worldnuclearreport.org/Construction-Start-at-First-Nuclear-Power-Plant-in-Bangladesh.html, accessed 29 June 2018.
707 - NEI, “Work begins on foundation for unit 1 of Bangladesh NPP”, 6 April 2018,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newswork-begins-on-foundation-for-unit-1-of-bangladesh-npp-6107152/, accessed 22 April 2018.
708 - NEI, “Construction licence granted for second Bangladesh reactor”, 10 July 2018,see https://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsconstruction-licence-granted-for-second-bangladesh-reactor-6239837/, accessed 18 April 2019.
709 - IAEA, “Country Nuclear Power Profiles—Bangladesh”, Updated 2012, see https://www-pub.iaea.org/mtcd/publications/pdf/
cnpp2012_cd/countryprofiles/Bangladesh/Figures/Bangladesh%20CNPP.pdf, accessed 8 May 2018.
710 - Srinivas Laxman, “Bangladesh & Russia Sign N-Plant Deal For Two Reactors At Rooppur”, Asian Scientist, 4 November 2011,see https://www.asianscientist.com/2011/11/topnews/rooppur-nuclear-power-project-bangladesh-russia-sign-nuclear-agreement-2011/,
accessed 22 April 2018.
711 - WNN, “Bangladesh, Russia ink $12.65 billion Rooppur plant deal”, 29 December 2015, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NNBangladesh-Russia-ink-12.65-billion-Rooppur-plant-deal-29121501.html, accessed 22 April 2018.
712 - A Rahman, “Ruppur Nuclear Power Plant: Bangladesh’s Potential Blackhole”, The Daily Star, 31 December 2015,see http://www.thedailystar.net/op-ed/politics/ruppur-nuclear-power-plant-bangladeshs-potential-blackhole-194017, accessed 22 April 2018.
713 - Rakesh Shama, “Is Bangladesh Ready for Nuclear?”, NIW, 22 December 2018.
714 - WNN, “Bangladesh, Russia Ink $12.65 Billion Rooppur Plant Deal”, 29 December 2015.

| 176

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

90 percent of the funds on credit at an interest rate of Libor plus 1.75 percent. Bangladesh will
have to pay back the loan in 28 years with a 10-year grace period. As in other countries, Russia
has offered to take back the spent fuel for reprocessing.715 In late May 2016, negotiations wereconcluded over the US$12.65 billion project, with Russia making available US$11.385 billion.716
The Bangladesh government allocated just US$77.62 million for “phase 1” of the project andin December 2018 announced that it was allocating US$42.33 million for “phase 2.717 The
government of Bangladesh has exempted the project from all taxes and duties, including
regulatory duty, advanced VAT import duty, VAT and supplementary duty on all imported
goods, parts and machinery.718
In late June 2016, the Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority issued a site license and then a
few days later the country’s cabinet approved the May Intergovernmental Agreement.719 In
April 2017, Tass, the Russian news agency, reported that permission to start construction had
been granted and that work would commence in the second half of 2017.720 In January 2019, theGovernment of Bangladesh signed a nuclear support contract with Russia for the supply of fuelduring the operational life of the reactor,721 with all used fuel to be sent back to Russia.722
There is growing concern about the project and the lack of information over the impact
on water use. Pressing concerns have also been raised over the lack of preparedness of
emergency planning and possible terrorist acts against the facility.723 Others have pointed tothe unsuitability of the site, with concerns over flooding, earthquakes and shifting alluvial
soil, plus water shortages and high water temperatures that could affect cooling.724 Critics ofthe project also claimed that Bangladesh lacks the skilled labor and adequate regulators tooversee the operation of the nuclear power plant.725 Bangladesh clearly wants help from othercountries, which might explain why it appointed India’s Global Centre for Nuclear Energy
Partnership (GCNEP) in 2017 to oversee the development and operation of the Rooppur
nuclear facilities.726
715 - NW, “Bangladesh will begin construction of first nuclear unit in August 2017: official”, 14 April 2016.
716 - NEI, “Russia initials credit agreement with Bangladesh for Rooppur NPP”, 30 May 2016, see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/
newsrussia-initials-credit-agreement-with-bangladesh-for-rooppur-npp-4907672/, accessed 22 April 2018.
717 - NEI, “Bangladesh allocates budget for Rooppur”, 7 December 2018,see https://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsbangladesh-allocates-budget-for-rooppur-6896443/, accessed 18 April 2019.
718 - Khondaker Golam Moazzem, “The Power and Energy Sector of Bangladesh: Challenges of Moving beyond the Transition Stage”,
Center for Policy Dialogue, March 2019, see https://cpd.org.bd/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/The-Power-and-Energy-Sector-ofBangladesh.pdf, accessed 11 June 2019.
719 - WNN, “Bangladesh moves forward with Rooppur”, 28 June 2016,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Bangladesh-moves-forward-with-Rooppur-2806167.html, accessed 24 April 2018.
720 - TASS, “Rosatom plans to launch construction of Ruppur power plant in Bangladesh”, 19 April 2017,see http://tass.com/economy/942156.
721 - Energy Bangla, “Nuclear Fuel Supply Deal signed with Russia for RNPP”, 31 January 2019,see http://energybangla.com/nuclear-fuel-supply-deal-signed-with-russia-for-rnpp/, accessed 11 June 2019.
722 - WNA, “Nuclear Power in Bangladesh”, Updated April 2019, see http://world-nuclear.org/information-library/country-profiles/
countries-a-f/bangladesh.aspx, accessed 11 June 2019.
723 - Petr Topychkanov, “Why the Bangladeshi public has concerns over the Rooppur nuclear project”, Russian Beyond,
27 February 2017, see https://www.rbth.com/blogs/south_asian_outlook/2017/02/27/why-the-bangladeshi-public-has-concerns-overthe-rooppur-nuclear-project_709866, accessed 22 April 2018.
724 - Rakesh Shama, “Is Bangladesh Ready for Nuclear?”, NIW, 22 December 2018.
725 - NIW, “Bangladesh”, Nuclear Intelligence Weekly, 1 December 2017.
726 - WNA, “Nuclear Power in Bangladesh”, Updated April 2019, op. cit.

| 177

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

The project’s economics have been widely questioned. Earlier in 2017, a retired nuclear
engineer who had been involved in advising the BAEC argued in one of the leading Englishlanguage newspapers in Bangladesh that the country was “paying a heavy price” for BAEC
not having “undertaken a large-scale programme of recruitment, and training of engineers”;
he also charged that Bangladesh was buying reactors at the “unreasonable and unacceptable”
price of US$5,500/kW because its “negotiators didn’t have the expertise to properly scrutinise
the quoted price”.727
Construction of both units is said to be going according to schedule and Rooppur-1 is currently
scheduled to go on line in 2023 followed by Rooppur‑2 in 2024.728 There have been reports
about corruption in the construction of the nuclear plant, although these allegations largely
revolve around materials for housing of plant workers and their families.729
In recent years, Bangladesh has been rapidly expanding its solar energy installations, withcapacity going from 18 MW in 2009 to 201 MW in 2018.730 In March 2019, the World Bank
approved a US$185 million grant to expand renewable energy capacity in Bangladesh.731

BelarusConstruction started in November 2013 at Belarus’s first nuclear reactor at the Ostrovets power
plant, also called Belarusian-1. Construction of a second 1200 MWe AES-2006 reactor started
in June 2014. In November 2011, the Russian and Belarusian governments agreed that Russia
would lend up to US$10 billion for 25 years to finance 90 percent of the contract between
Atomstroyexport and the Belarus Directorate for Nuclear Power Plant Construction. In
July 2012, the contract was signed for the construction of the two reactors for an estimated costof US$10 billion, including US$3 billion for new infrastructure to accommodate the remotenessof Ostrovets in northern Belarus.732 The project assumes liability for the supply of all fuel andrepatriation of spent fuel for the life of the plant. The fuel is to be reprocessed in Russia andthe separated wastes returned to Belarus. In August 2011, the Ministry of Natural Resources
and Environmental Protection of Belarus stated that the first unit would be commissioned in2016 and the second one in 2018.733 These dates were revised, and when construction began,
the reactors were scheduled to be completed by 2018 and 2020 respectively.734 In May 2016, the727 - Abdul Martin, “The economics of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant”, The Daily Star, 2 March 2017,see https://www.thedailystar.net/op-ed/economics/the-economics-the-rooppur-nuclear-power-plant-1369345, accessed 22 April 2018.
728 - WNN, “Rooppur 1 achieves first construction milestone”, 5 April 2018,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Rooppur-1-achieves-first-construction-milestone-05041801.html, accessed 24 April 2018.
729 - The Daily Star, “Rooppur Power Plant: HC asks ministry to submit report on ‘irregularities’”, 21 May 2019, see https://www.
thedailystar.net/frontpage/news/rooppur-power-plant-hc-asks-ministry-submit-report-irregularities-1746547, accessed 13 June 2019.
730 - IRENA, “Renewable Capacity Statistics 2019”, International Renewable Energy Agency, March 2019, see https://www.irena.org/-/
media/Files/IRENA/Agency/Publication/2019/Mar/IRENA_RE_Capacity_Statistics_2019.pdf, accessed 13 June 2019.
731 - World Bank, “World Bank Helps Bangladesh Expand Renewable Energy”, Press Release, 1 March 2019, see http://www.worldbank.
org/en/news/press-release/2019/03/01/world-bank-helps-bangladesh-expand-renewable-energy, accessed 14 June 2019.
732 - NIW, “Belarus, Aided by Russia and Broke, Europe’s Last Dictatorship Proceeds With NPP”, 28 September 2012.
733 - WNA, “Nuclear Power in Belarus”, Updated October 2017,see http://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/country-profiles/countries-a-f/belarus.aspx, accessed 21 April 2018.
734 - WNN, “Ostrovets plant meets construction safety rules”, 7 November 2014,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Ostrovets-plant-meets-construction-safety-rules-07111401.html, accessed 21 April 2018.

| 178

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

respective startup months were specified as November 2018 and July 2020.735 In August 2016,
the reactor pressure vessel of unit one slipped during installation and fell two meters to theground. This led to an eight‑month delay, while it was replaced.736 In March 2018, the headof the reactor division at the power plant said that first electricity supply to the grid would
be expected in the 4th quarter of 2019 with the second unit online in July 2020.737 The startof the Commissioning process for the 1st unit was begun in April 2019,738 with an expectationof full power by the end of the year. Almost simultaneously the Government announced a
restructuring of the energy industry, which may lead to the establishment of two nationalenergy companies, one for gas and the other for electricity.
The official cost of the project has risen by 26 percent, to 56 billion Russian rubles in
2001‑prices (US$20011.8 billion).739 However, the falling exchange rate of the ruble against the
dollar significantly affects the dollar price of the project.
The project is the focus of international opposition and criticism, with formal complaints
from the Lithuanian government740 which has published a list of fundamental problems of the
project. These include that there have been major construction problems, the site is considered
non-suitable, and Belarus has been found to be in noncompliance with some of its public
engagement obligations concerning the construction of the plant, according to the meetingof the Parties of the Espoo Convention.741 Belarus was in 2017 also found in non-compliancewith the Aarhus Convention for harassing members of civil society campaigning against the
project.742 Then, in April 2019, a meeting of the Espoo Convention voted 30‑6 that Belarus
had violated the convention’s rules while choosing Ostrovets as the site for the country’s firstnuclear power plant.743
In April 2017, an accord was signed by all parties in the Lithuanian Parliament noting that allnecessary measures should be taken to stop the construction of Ostrovets and “at least to ensurethat the electricity produced in this nuclear power plant will not be allowed into Lithuania
nor will it be allowed to be sold on the Lithuanian market under any circumstances ”.744 To
allay European concerns about Ostrovets, the Belarussian government submitted the project735 - WNN, “Reactor vessel assembly completed for second Belarusian unit”, 26 May 2016, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NNReactor-vessel-assembly-completed-for-second-Belarusian-unit-26051601.html, accessed 21 April 2018.
736 - NIW, “Briefs—Belarus”, 7 April 2017.
737 - Belarus News, “Belarusian nuclear power plant to give electricity to national power grid in Q4 2019”, 28 March 2018,see http://eng.belta.by/economics/view/belarusian-nuclear-power-plant-to-give-electricity-to-national-power-grid-in-q1-2019-110418-2018/,
accessed 21 April 2018.
738 - WNN, “Commissioning starts at first Belarus unit”, 8 April 2019,see https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Commissioning-starts-at-first-Belarus-unit, accessed 14 April 2019.
739 - Charter 97, “Astravets NPP Becomes 12 Billion More Expensive In One Day”, 30 December 2016,see https://charter97.org/en/news/2016/12/30/236059/, accessed 21 April 2018.
740 - Bryan Bradley, “Lithuania Urges Belarus to Halt Nuclear Project on Safety Issues”, Bloomberg, 20 August 2013, see https://www.
bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-08-20/lithuania-urges-belarus-to-halt-nuclear-project-on-safety-issues, accessed 22 April 2018.
741 - MoFA, “Fundamental problems of the Astravets Nuclear Power Plant under construction in Belarus”, Ministry of Foreign Affairsof the Republic of Lithuania, 29 March 2018, see http://lv.mfa.lt/default/en/news/fundamental-problems-of-the-astravets-nuclearpower-plant-under-construction-in-belarus-, accessed 22 April 2018.
742 - UNECE, “Findings and recommendations with regard to communication ACCC/C/2014/102 concerning compliance by Belarus”,
United Nations, Economic and Social Council, 24 July 2017, see https://www.unece.org/fileadmin/DAM/env/pp/compliance/CC-58/ece.
mp.pp.c.1.2017.19.e.pdf, accessed 22 May 2018.
743 - NIW, “Briefs Belarus”, 15 February 2019.
744 - Lithuanian Parliament, “Accord between the Parliamentary Political Parties of the Republic of Lithuania on Joint Actions Against
the Unsafe Nuclear Power plant in Astraveyets”, April 2017.

| 179

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

to a post-Fukushima nuclear stress test that produced in 2017 a national report, submitted topeer-review by a commission from the European Nuclear Safety Regulators Group (ENSREG)
and the European Commission. In July 2018, the European Commission announced that
the ENSREG peer-review report had been presented to the Belarussian authorities and theexecutive summary was made public, which concludes that “although the report is overall
positive, it includes important recommendations that necessitate an appropriate follow up”.
For example, on the topic of assessment of severe accident management, it says, “the overall
concept of practical elimination of early and large releases should be more explicitly reflectedin an updated plant safety case.” It also gave recommendations for better seismic robustness.745
The next step is these recommendations need to be incorporated into the next draft of the
National Action Plan.746 In May 2019, Lithuanian Minister of Energy Žygimantas Vaičiūnas
made an appeal to the European Commission to take strong leadership and a principled
position to ensure that Belarus does not launch the Ostrovets nuclear power plant until thestress test recommendations are implemented.747
Belarus has historically been an importer of electricity from Russia and Ukraine. But inMay 2018, Deputy‑Prime Minister Vladimir Semashko stated: “In 2018 we stopped electricenergy import, because we had upgraded our own power grid. We are self-reliant and canprovide ourselves with our own electric energy.”748 In fact, Semashko claims that in the first
four months of 2018, Belarus exported 0.4 TWh. The startup of the Ostrovets nuclear plant
would significantly increase excess capacity. Lithuania has said it will not accept any electricity
from Belarus and is trying to get its neighbors to follow the ban and it will use the Espoo rulingto add weight to its claim. Currently this has not been successful, although there has been an
agreement to introducing an electricity import tax.749 The sale of electricity to the West will bevital for the economics of the project, as increasing domestic consumption or even sale back to
Russia will raise significantly lower revenues, due to lower prices.
Russia is currently upgrading its grid connection between the Leningrad and Smolensk nuclear
power stations, potentially also enabling a better connection of Ostrovets to the West-Russian
electricity grid, circumventing the Baltic States. Vice‑Premier Semashko is confident: “Ourenergy is cheaper and it will be on demand on this market.”750745 - ENSREG, “Belarus Stress Tests Peer Review—Executive summary”, European Nuclear Safety Regulators Group, July 2018,see http://www.ensreg.eu/sites/default/files/attachments/hlg_p2018-36_156_belarus_stress_test_prt_report_-_executive_summary_0.pdf,
accessed 5 July 2018.
746 - European Commission, “Comprehensive risk and safety assessments of the Belarus nuclear power plant completed”, Press
Release, 3 July 2018, see http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-18-4347_en.htm, accessed 4 July 2018.
747 - Ministry of Energy of the Republic of Lithuania, “Lithuania has formally applied to the European Commission to demandthat implementation of the Astravets NPP stress test recommendations be ensured”, 7 May 2019, see http://enmin.lrv.lt/en/news/
lithuania-has-formally-applied-to-the-european-commission-to-demand-that-implementation-of-the-astravets-npp-stress-testrecommendations-be-ensured, accessed 11 June 2019.
748 - BelTa, “Belarus ramps up electricity export in 2018”, Belarusian Telegraph Agency, 14 May 2018,see http://eng.belta.by/economics/view/belarus-ramps-up-electricity-export-in-2018-111638-2018/, accessed 3 July 2018.
749 - Reuters, “Baltics to cooperate on Belarus nuclear power tax”, 14 December 2017, see https://www.reuters.com/article/balticsenergy/baltics-to-cooperate-on-belarus-nuclear-power-tax-idUSL8N1OC3QD, accessed 22 April 2018.
750 - BelTa, “Belarus ramps up electricity export in 2018”, 14 May 2018, op. cit.

| 180

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 On the other hand, Belarus’ energy minister Viktor Karankevich announced on 25 April 2019that a total of 916 MW of Ostrovets’ capacity will be used in electric district heating plants.751

TurkeyIn Turkey, three separate projects are being or have been developed over the past decades withthree different reactor designs and three different financing schemes. Despite this, in early
2018, construction formally only began on the first of these projects.

AkkuyuSome four decades after the first ideas came up for a nuclear power plant at Akkuyu, in theprovince of Mersin on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast, construction started in April 2018, one
day before President Putin of Russia visited Turkey for the official launch of the project.752 The
power plant is to be implemented by Rosatom of Russia under a Build-Own-Operate (BOO)
model.
Only two months prior to the official construction start, Rosatom’s Turkish partners quit. The
consortium of private companies Cengiz Holding, Kolin Insaat Turizm Sanayi ve Ticaret andKalyon Insaat Sanayi ve Ticaret was to hold 49 percent of the shares.753
JSC Akkuyu Nuclear has been established to ensure construction of the project and has been
designated as the Strategic Investor. Although Rosatom initially was supposed to completely
own the project, according to the establishing agreement, at least 51 percent of shares in thefinished project should belong to Russian companies and up to 49 percent of shares can beavailable for sale to outside investors. Negotiations with potential Turkish investors continue
after the three prospective partners withdrew because they expected too little benefit fromthe project.754 However, Rosatom has stated that it would be able to complete the project even
if it is unable to attract local investors.755 As the Strategic Investor, the project will be able toclaim tax reductions and exemptions (including from income tax and value added tax), as wellas custom duties exemption.756 In April 2019, Rosatom stated that it was in talks with bothstate-run and private Turkish companies seeking to sell 49 percent of the project.757
751 - BelTa, “Integration of Belarusian nuclear power plant into national power grid in progress”, 25 April 2019,see https://eng.belta.by/society/view/integration-of-belarusian-nuclear-power-plant-into-national-power-grid-in-progress-120629-2019,
accessed 4 May 2019.
752 - Tuvan Gumrukeu, Orhan Coskun, “Turkey grants Rosatom construction license for first unit of Akkuyu nuclear plant”, Reuters,
2 April 2018, see https://www.reuters.com/article/us-turkey-russia-nuclearpower/turkey-grants-rosatom-construction-license-for-firstunit-of-akkuyu-nuclear-plant-idUSKCN1H91OY, accessed 22 May 2018.
753 - AFP, “Un consortium turc se retire du projet de la centrale nucléaire d’Akkuyu”, Agence France Presse, 6 February 2018
(in French), see https://www.romandie.com/news/887776.rom, accessed 4 July 2018.
754 - Rosatom, “JSC Akkuyu Nuclear designated strategic investor in Turkey”, 2 April 2018,see http://www.rosatom.ru/en/press-centre/news/jsc-akkuyu-nuclear-designated-strategic-investor-in-turkey/, accessed 20 April 2018.
755 - Reuters, “Russia capable of building Akkuyu plant without partners: Minister”, published in Hurriyet Daily News,
6 April 2018, see http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/russia-is-able-to-complete-akkuyu-nuclear-power-plant-construction-russianminister-129886, accessed 6 April 2018.
756 - Rosatom, “JSC Akkuyu Nuclear Designated Strategic Investor in Turkey”, 2 April 2018.
757 - Ahval, “Russia’s Rosatom in talks to sell 49 pct stake in Akkuyu nuclear plant”, 15 April 2019,see https://ahvalnews.com/akkuyu/russias-rosatom-talks-sell-49-pct-stake-akkuyu-nuclear-plant, accessed 18 April 2019.

| 181

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

An agreement was signed in May 2010 for four VVER‑1200 reactors (Generation III+), withconstruction originally expected to start in 2015. At the heart of the project is a 15-year Power
Purchase Agreement (PPA), which includes 70 percent of the electricity produced from units 1
and 2 and 30 percent of units 3 and 4. Therefore 50 percent of the total power from the station
is to be sold at a guaranteed price for the first 15 years, with the rest to be sold on the market.
Currency fluctuation, and in particular the fall in the value of the Turkish lira, makes the priceguarantees in dollars (US$123.50/MWh) particularly problematic.758
The former CEO of Akkuyu JSC (the project company set up by Russia’s Rosatom),Alexander Superfin, said in October 2013 that the project was going to be operational by
mid‑2020.759 However, further delays have occurred, as the Akkuyu JSC’s Environmental
Impact Assessment was rejected by the Ministry of Environment when submitted in July 2013.
When it was eventually approved in December 2014, it was said that the commissioning of thefirst unit was likely to be in 2021.760 As a result of these domestic developments and financing
problems, it was reported in November 2015 that the operation would now occur only in 2022761
at an estimated budget of US$20 billion. Site preparation work started in April 2015762 and it
was estimated that US$3 billion had been spent as of autumn 2015.763 On 3 March 2017, Akkuyu
JSC applied for a construction license.764 Rosatom stated: “According to the Intergovernmental
Agreement, the commissioning of the first power unit must take place no later than 7 years
after the issuance of all permits for construction by the Republic of Turkey.”765
In July 2017 the European Parliament adopted a resolution calling on the Turkish Government
to halt the plans for the construction of the Akkuyu project due to its location in a region prone
to severe earthquakes and called on “the Turkish Government to involve, or at least consult,the governments of its neighboring countries, such as Greece and Cyprus.”766 In May 2019, aspart of Turkey’s accession process, the European Commission published a review of progress
on meeting the EU’s acquis. On nuclear power it noted thatgiven Turkey’s plan to have a first nuclear power reactor commissioned and operational by2023, the legal and institutional framework should be improved rapidly to align with the EU’s
nuclear legislation and ensure nuclear safety in line with the Euratom Treaty.
758 - Phil Chaffee, “New Build, Revised 2023 Milestone for Akkuyu”, NIW, 29 March 2019.
759 - Orhan Coskun, “Turkey’s first nuclear plant facing further delays - sources”, Reuters, 7 February 2014,see https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-turkey-nuclear-delay/turkeys-first-nuclear-plant-facing-further-delays-sourcesidUKBREA160P220140207, accessed 22 April 2018.
760 - WNN, “Akkuyu project EIA gets ministry approval”, 1 December 2014,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Akkuyu-project-EIA-gets-ministry-approval-01121401.html, accessed 22 April 2018.
761 - Sputnik News, “First Reactor of Turkey’s Akkuyu Nuclear Plant to Start Operating by 2022”, 19 November 2015,see https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201511191030420598-akkuyu-nuclear-plant-start-2022/, accessed 22 April 2018.
762 - WNN, “Ground broken for Turkey’s first nuclear power plant”, 15 April 2015, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NNGround-broken-for-Turkeys-first-nuclear-power-plant-1541501.html, accessed 22 April 2018.
763 - Hurriyet Daily News, “$3 billion spent on Akkuyu power plant so far: CEO”, 29 September 2015,see http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/3-bln-spent-on-akkuyu-power-plant-so-far-ceo.aspx?pageID=238&nID=89154&NewsCatID=348,
accessed 22 April 2018.
764 - WNN, “Akkuyu project receives production licence”, 16 June 2017,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Akkuyu-project-receives-production-licence-16061701.html, accessed 22 April 2018.
765 - Orhan Coskun, “Turkey’s first nuclear plant facing further delays - sources”, Reuters, 7 February 2014.
766 - European Parliament, “2016 Report on Turkey— European Parliament resolution of 6 July 2017 on the 2016 Commission
Report on Turkey (2016/2308(INI))”, Texts Adopted 6 July 2017, see http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+TA+P8-TA-2017-0306+0+DOC+PDF+V0//EN, accessed 22 April 2018.

| 182

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

The Commission further stated that
there is a need of additional legal and technical assurance that the Turkish nuclear power
plants will be constructed, commissioned, and operated safely and in line with the Euratom
Treaty and EU secondary legislation.767

No such consultations took place. In April 2018, a construction license was awarded, thefirst concrete was poured, with first electricity expected to be generated in 2023 (the 100th
anniversary of the founding of the modern state of Turkey), with all four units to be operationalby 2025.768 The Government of Cyprus has protested about the start of construction, citing
safety concerns and potential impact, as the power plant is only a few dozen kilometers fromthe northern coast of Cyprus.769
In March 2019, the project management announced that it had finished the concreting of thebasemat for the nuclear island for the first unit and that it was now expected that Unit 1 would
be physically completed in 2023, with generation coming at a later date.770 A limited works
license was issued for Unit 2 in October 2018, with a full construction license expected in
mid‑2019.
Some international experts have raised concerns over the political stability of the deal, andAaron Stein of the Washington-based Atlantic Council warned that a potential barrier tocompletion was the political relationship between the two countries: “Russia has shown that it
will stop construction if it’s upset with Turkey.”771
In May 2019, it was reported that construction had been “held up” due to the discovery ofcracks in the foundations. Apparently, the cracks were first discovered in July 2018 leading tore‑laying of the concrete. However, further cracks were then discovered in the re‑laid concretewith the consequence that a larger section of the foundations had to be redone.772

Sinop
Sinop is on Turkey’s northern coast and was planned to host a 4.4 GW power plant of four
units of the ATMEA reactor-design. If completed, these would be the first reactors of thisdesign, jointly developed by Japanese Mitsubishi and French AREVA.773 In April 2015, Turkish

767 - European Commission, “Commission Staff Working Document, Turkey 2019 Report - SWD(2019) 220 final - Accompanying
the Document ‘Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social
Committee and the Committee of the Regions - 2019 Communication on EU Enlargement Policy - COM 2019, 260 Final’”, May 2019,see https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-enlargement/sites/near/files/20190529-turkey-report.pdf, accessed 10 June 2019.
768 - NEI, “Construction of Turkey’s Akkuyu NPP begins”, 4 April 2018,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsconstruction-of-turkeys-akkuyu-npp-begins-6102914/, accessed 22 April 2018.
769 - ekathimerini.com, “Nicosia to protest construction of Akkuyu nuclear plant”, 5 April 2018, see http://www.ekathimerini.
com/227454/article/ekathimerini/news/nicosia-to-protest-construction-of-akkuyu-nuclear-plant, accessed 22 April 2018.
770 - Phil Chaffee, “New Build, Revised 2023 Milestone for Akkuyu”, NIW, 29 March 2019.
771 - Phil Chaffee, “Putin-Erdogan Relationship Key to Akkuyu Progress”, NIW, 6 April2018.
772 - Ahval, “Cracks discovered during construction of Turkey’s first nuclear plant”, 6 May 2019,see https://ahvalnews.com/akkuyu/cracks-discovered-during-construction-turkeys-first-nuclear-plant, accessed 11 June 2019.
773 - WNN, “Turkish utility eyes large stake in Sinop project”, 12 May 2015,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/C-Turkish-utility-eyes-large-stake-in-Sinop-project-12051501.html, accessed 22 April 2018.

| 183

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

President Erdogan approved parliament’s ratification of the intergovernmental agreement withJapan.774
The estimated cost of the project was initially US$22 billion and involves a consortium of
Mitsubishi, AREVA (now known again as Framatome), GDF‑Suez (now known as Engie), andItochu, who between them will own 51 percent of the project, with the remaining 49 percent
owned by Turkish companies including the State-owned electricity generating company
EÜAS.775
The division between the international partners remains in fact undecided. The ongoing
financial problems of new-old Framatome after the absorption by EDF are affecting its ability
to invest in the project, as does the review by Engie of its involvement in nuclear projects acrossits portfolio. Furthermore, concerns remain about site suitability given its seismic conditions,which have led to discussions about putting the station on pads to reduce possible groundmovement.776 According to AREVA, in September 2016, AREVA NP signed a “preliminary
engineering contract with MHI [Mitsubishi Heavy Industry] to support the technical and costfeasibility study for the proposed construction and operation of four ATMEA1 reactors at the
Sinop site”.777 The project is complicated by the region’s lack of large-scale demand and theexisting coal power stations, so 1,400 km of transmission lines would be needed to take theelectricity to Istanbul and Ankara.
In January 2018, an Environmental Impact Assessment application was made to theEnvironment and Urban Planning Ministry. However, in March 2018, reports from Japansuggested that the expected cost of the project had doubled to US$37.5 billion and that it
would be difficult to see completion by 2023. It was suggested that the Japanese side informed
its Turkish partner of the expected cost increase.778 Then in April 2018, press reports fromJapan suggested that Itochu would no longer be willing to participate due to the exploding
cost estimates, which had risen to more than JPY5,000 billion (US$46.2 billion) from
JPY2,000 billion (US$19 billion) in 2013.779
By the end of 2018, the project was all but killed off, with announcements that the Japanese
Government was asking its Turkish counterpart for additional funds to support the project,knowing that the demand would be rejected.780 Then in December 2018 the Nikkei, an economic
paper in Japan, reported that Mitsubishi Heavy Industries had withdrawn from the project,
finally ending the project.781
774 - WNN, “Ground broken for Turkey’s first nuclear power plant”, 15 April 2015, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NNGround-broken-for-Turkeys-first-nuclear-power-plant-1541501.html, accessed 22 April 2018.
775 - WNN, “Turkish Utility Eyes Large Stake in Sinop Project”, 12 May 2015.
776 - NIW, “Akkuyu’s Prospects Pull Past Sinop”, 22 July 2016.
777 - AREVA, “Reference Document 2006”, April 2017, see http://www.sa.areva.com/finance/liblocal/docs/doc-ref-2016/AREVA_
DDR2016_EN_2.pdf, accessed 22 April 2018.
778 - Yasuaki Oshika, “Japan’s nuclear export to Turkey in doubt as costs estimate doubles”, The Asahi Shimbun, 15 March 2018,see http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201803150046.html, accessed 22 April 2018.
779 - NEI, “Japan’s Itochu pulls out of Turkish nuclear project”, 30 April 2018,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsjapans-itochu-pulls-out-of-turkish-nuclear-project-6133206, accessed 15 May 2018.
780 - Mainichi Daily News, “Gov’t to give up plan to export nuclear power reactors to Turkey”, 4 January 2019,see https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20190104/p2a/00m/0bu/011000c, accessed 18 April 2019.
781 - Matsukubo Hijime, “Mitsubishi Heavy Industries withdraws from the NPP project in Sinop, Turkey ~NPP makers need to switch
to realistic track in the age of decommissioning~”, Citizens’ Nuclear Information Center, 30 January 2019,see http://www.cnic.jp/english/?p=4271, accessed 11 June 2019.

| 184

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 İğneadaIn October 2015, the Turkish government suggested it was aiming to build a third nuclear
power plant, at the İğneada site. The most likely constructors would be Westinghouse andthe Chinese State Nuclear Power Technology Corporation (SNPTC). Chinese companies
have been said to “aggressively” pursuing the contract, reportedly worth US$22–25 billion. In
September 2016, China and Turkey signed a nuclear co-operation agreement similar to themechanism used to develop the country’s other nuclear projects. However, their financial
collapse of makes Westinghouse’s current involvement in the project unlikely.

United Arab Emirates
In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), building is ongoing at the Barakah nuclear project, 300 km
west of Abu Dhabi, where there are four reactors under construction. At the time of the contract
signing in December 2009 with Korean Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO), the Emirates
Nuclear Energy Corp (ENEC), said that “the contract for the construction, commissioning
and fuel loads for four units equaled approximately US$20 billion, with a high percentage ofthe contract being offered under a fixed-price arrangement”.782
The original financing plan for the project was thought to include US$10 billion from theExport-Import Bank of Korea, US$2 billion from the Ex-Im Bank of the U.S., US$6 billion
from the government of Abu Dhabi, and US$2 billion from commercial banks.783 However,it later transpired that the total cost of the project is at least €24.4 billion (US$28.2 billion).
Reportedly, its financing was US$16.2 billion from Abu Dhabi’s Department of Finance, equity
financing US$4.7 billion, US$2.5 billion through a loan from the Export-Import Bank of Korea,
with loan agreements from the National Bank of Abu Dhabi, First Gulf Bank, HSBC andStandard Chartered making up the remainder.784 In October 2016, KEPCO took an 18 percent
equity stake in Nawah Energy Company that owns the four reactors, with ENEC holding theremaining 82 percent. 785
In July 2010, a site-preparation license and a limited construction license were granted for four
reactors at Barakah, 53 kilometers from Ruwais,786 40 km from the border with Saudi Arabia
and 100 km from Qatar. A tentative schedule published in late December 2010, and not publicly
altered since, suggested that Barakah-1 would start commercial operation in May 2017 withunit 2 operating from 2018, unit 3 in 2019, and Unit 4 in 2020.

782 - ENEC, “UAE Selects Korea Electric Power Corp, as Prime Team as Prime Contractor for Peaceful Nuclear Power”, Emirates
Nuclear Energy Corporation, 27 December 2009, see https://www.enec.gov.ae/news/uae-selects-korea-electric-power-corp-as-primeteam-as-prime-contractor-fo/, accessed 22 April 2018.
783 - Kim San-Baik, “Case Studies On Financing And Electricity Price Arrangements—The Barakah Nuclear Power Plants, The
United Arab Emirates”, OECD/NEA, 19 September 2013, see http://www.oecd-nea.org/ndd/workshops/wpne/presentations/docs/4_2_
KIM_%20Barakah%20presentation.pdf, accessed 22 April 2018.
784 - NIW, “Kepco takes 18% of Barakah”, 21 October 2016.
785 - NEI, “Kepco and Enec set up joint venture for Barakah NPP”, 25 October 2016,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newskepco-and-enec-set-up-joint-venture-for-barakah-npp-5647366/, accessed 22 April 2018.
786 - Arabian Business, “ENEC Welcomes Regulator’s License Approval”, 11 July 2010,see http://www.arabianbusiness.com/enec-welcomes-regulator-s-licence-approvals-306150.html, accessed 22 April 2018.

| 185

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 Construction of Barakah-1 officially started on 19 July 2012, of Barakah‑2 on 28 May 2013, ofBarakah‑3 on 24 September 2014 and Unit 4 on 30 July 2015.787 In May 2016, ENEC stated that
Barakah‑1 was about 87 percent complete, while Barakah‑2, ‑3 and ‑4 had reached 68 percent,
47 percent and 29 percent completion respectively.788 As late as October 2016, the South Koreanpress was reporting unit 1 to be still scheduled for completion by May 2017.789 Then, in May 2017,
Reuters suggested that the startup of the first reactor was delayed, potentially until the end of
2017, due to a lack of locally trained and licensed domestic personnel.790 The same month ENEC
announced it had “completed initial construction activities for Unit 1” and the “handover of all
systems for commissioning”; the plant as a whole would be 81 percent complete, with Barakah‑1
at 95 percent finished. At the same time, ENEC stated: “The timeline includes an extension
for the start-up of nuclear operations for Unit 1, from 2017 to 2018, to ensure sufficient time
for international assessments and adherence to nuclear industry safety standards, as well asa reinforcement of operational proficiency for plant personnel.”791 In March 2018, the extent
of the delay was confirmed with Nawah reporting that the startup of Unit 1 would only be in
2019.792 But only a few months later, in July 2018, a new delay was announced, so that startup
of Unit 1 would be in late 2019 or early 2020793, with commercial operation would not beeffective until 2020, three years behind schedule. Despite this, an official ceremony was heldon 26 March 2018 to mark the end of construction of the first reactor. Apparently, a key reason
for the delay remains the lack of trained staff and the multiplicity of cultures and languages
among new personnel.794 As a recognition of the scale of the ongoing problem, EDF signed anagreement with ENEC to provide services to support “operating and maintaining” the plant inNovember 2018.795
South Korean media reported that there have been a number of serious accidents at theconstruction site, resulting in deaths of workers. An assessment undertaken by Bechtel on
behalf of KEPCO indicated that its “contractors largely failed to ensure worker safety”.796
Another type of serious problem came up in the form of “voids” that have been found in thecontainment concrete of Units 2 and 3, although ENEC said that these weren’t a safety risk,
787 - Ibidem.
788 - NIW, “United Arab Emirates”, 20 May 2016.
789 - Lee Hyo-sik, “KEPCO to operate UAE nuclear plant for 60 years”, The Korean Times, 20 October 2016,see http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/biz/2016/10/123_216466.html, accessed 22 April 2018.
790 - Jane Chung, “UAE delays launch of first nuclear power reactor”, Reuters, 4 May 2017, see https://www.reuters.com/article/
us-kepco-emirates-nuclearpower-exclusive/exclusive-uae-delays-launch-of-first-nuclear-power-reactor-idUSKBN1801ZD, accessed
22 April 2018.
791 - ENEC, “ENEC Announces Completion of Initial Construction Work for Unit 1 of Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant & Progress
Update Towards Safety-led Operations”, Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation, 5 May 2017, see https://www.enec.gov.ae/enecannounces-completion-of-initial-construction-work-barakah-unit-1-progress-update/, accessed 22 April 2018.
792 - Nawah, “Next phase of preparations for Barakah Unit 1 Nuclear Operations starts”, Press Release, 28 May 2018,see http://www.nawah.ae/en/news/NextphaseofpreparationsforBarakah.html, accessed 29 May 2018.
793 - Arabian Business, “UAE further delays launch of first nuclear reactor”, 4 July 2018,see https://www.arabianbusiness.com/energy/400041-uae-further-delays-launch-of-first-nuclear-reactor, accessed 8 July 2018.
794 - Stephanie Cook, “The Challenge of Barakah’s Multicultural Workforce”, NIW, 23 March 2018.
795 - EDF, “EDF and Nawah Energy Company sign operations and maintenance assistance agreement for Barakah Nuclear Energy
Plant, United Arab Emirates”, 22 November 2018, see https://www.edf.fr/en/the-edf-group/dedicated-sections/journalists/all-pressreleases/edf-and-nawah-energy-company-sign-operations-and-maintenance-assistance-agreement-for-barakah-nuclear-energy-plantunited-arab-emirates, accessed 9 April 2019.
796 - Lee Hyo-sik, “KEPCO hit by safety lapses at UAE nuke plant site”, The Korean Times, 22 February 2017,see http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/biz/2017/02/367_224498.html, accessed 22 April 2018.

| 186

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

had been repaired, and shouldn’t delay construction.797 It was not clear how big these voids are,but a similar problem has been experienced in the 1990s at the Hanbit reactor in Yeonggwang,South Jeolla Province in South Korea, revealing holes large enough for a small child. The
problems were found following the discovery of bulges in concrete due to movement in grease
within the empty spaces and settling in gaps near the exterior wall798—the grease is used tolubricate the adjustable metal cables that run through the containment walls to strengthen it.
Cracks were also found in the containment building of unit 2, with conflicting reports as towhether or not similar cracking in the containment building of unit 3 had also been found.
Even if these are easily repaired, the discovery raises two concerns: firstly, the containmentbuilding is a crucial barrier to stop potentially radioactive emissions escaping in the event of an
accident, and secondly, this is a further indication that construction has not gone as smoothly
as suggested by ENEC.
Further difficulties are emerging with the APR 1400 design, with problems around the reactor’spilot-operated safety relief valve (POSRV). This is designed to protect the pressurizer against
overpressure and has been seen to be a problem for the design since 2016 when it inadvertently
opened, allowing cooling water to leak during start-up of Shin‑Kori-3 in South Korea. Then,possibly during testing, in November 2017 the same problem occurred at Unit 1 at Barakah, andas a result the regulator said that the valve didn’t meet its safety acceptance criteria.799
The UAE released a long-term energy plan in February 2017, which proposes that by 2050
renewable energy will provide 44 percent of the country’s electricity, with natural gas
38 percent, “clean fossil fuels” 12 percent and nuclear 6 percent.800 The nuclear share is in linewith expected output from the Barakah nuclear power plant, so it seems that no further nuclear
power plants are envisaged at this point. In September 2017, Government officials confirmedthat there were no plans to build a second plant.801
There are concerns that the Barakah plant maybe a target in the ongoing conflict with the
Houthi rebels based in Yemen. They have claimed, although the Emirati state denied, that they
had successfully fired a cruise missile at the power plant. The UAE stated that they have thedefensive capabilities to deal with any such threats and that the “Barakah reactor is immune.”802
However the plant remains the source of diplomatic tension, and in March 2019 Qatar wrote to
the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) asking them to intervene in the project sayingthat “the lack of any international co-operation with neighboring states regarding disasterplanning, health and safety and the protection of the environment pose a serious threat to797 - Geert De Clerco, “Exclusive: Qatar asks IAEA to intervene over ‘threat’ posed by UAE nuclear plant”, Reuters, 20 March 2019,see https://www.reuters.com/article/us-qatar-emirates-nuclearpower-exclusive/exclusive-qatar-asks-iaea-to-intervene-over-threatposed-by-uae-nuclear-plant-idUSKCN1R120L, accessed 9 April 2019.
798 - Choi Ha-yan, “Controversy over Barakah power plant construction fiasco continues”, Hankyoreh, 18 December 2018,see http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_international/874896.html, accessed 9 April 2019.
799 - Stephanie Cook, “Shared POSRV Nightmares for KHNP and Enec”, NIW, 15 March 2019.
800 - LeAnne Graves, “UAE Energy Plan aims to cut CO2 emissions 70% by 2050”, The National, 10 January 2017,see https://www.thenational.ae/uae/uae-energy-plan-aims-to-cut-co2-emissions-70-by-2050-1.51582, accessed 22 April 2018.
801 - Amena Bahr, “UAE Abu Dhabi Unlikely to Build a Second Nuclear plant”, NIW, 29 September 2017.
802 - NIW, “Briefs—Saudi Arabia”, 22 September 2017.

| 187

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

the stability of the region and its environment”.803 Qatar said that the region’s environmental
concerns will rise further if and when Saudi Arabia’s nuclear program becomes active.

“CONTRACTS SIGNED”
The World Nuclear Association (WNA) has put Lithuania, Poland and Vietnam in a category of“contracts signed”. However, in none of these cases does there seem to have been any notable
progress over the past twelve months; rather they are either dormant—in the case of Lithuania
and Vietnam—or any expected operational date is moving backwards, as in the case of Poland.

Lithuania
Although Lithuania signed a memorandum of understanding with Hitachi-GE for theconstruction of a new nuclear power station at Visaginas, it never signed a contract and the
project was cancelled following a no-vote in a referendum earlier in 2012.
Lithuania had two large RBMK (Graphite-Moderated Reactor—Chernobyl Type) reactors at
Ignalina, which were closed in 2004 and 2009, a requirement for joining the European Union
after the 1992 G7 Summit in Munich concluded the reactors were not sufficiently upgradable.
Since then there have been ongoing attempts to develop a replacement project, either
unilaterally or with neighboring countries. (See earlier editions of the WNISR for an annual
account). However, in October 2012, a consultative national referendum on the future of nuclear
power was held and 63 percent voted against new nuclear construction, with sufficient turnout
to validate the result.804 Prior to his appointment as Prime Minister, Algirdas Butkevicius statedthat legislation prohibiting the project would be submitted once the new parliament convenes
and that “the people expressed their wish in the referendum, and I will follow the people’swill”.805 In early 2016, the Energy Minister of Lithuania, Rokas Masiulis, said that the project
had been shelved indefinitely, due to unfavorable market conditions.806 No significant changes
have been reported since, whereas opposition against the Ostrovets nuclear project in Belarus,
20 km from the Lithuanian border (see Belarus section above), has increased opposition
against nuclear power in Lithuania in general.

PolandAs far as publicly known, Poland has not signed any contracts for the construction of a new
nuclear power plant after the construction of the Soviet designed Zarnowiec project was
halted in 1989.

803 - Geert De Clercq, “Exclusive: Qatar asks IAEA to intervene over ‘threat’ posed by UAE nuclear plant”, Reuters, 20 March 2019,see https://www.reuters.com/article/us-qatar-emirates-nuclearpower-exclusive/exclusive-qatar-asks-iaea-to-intervene-over-threatposed-by-uae-nuclear-plant-idUSKCN1R120L, accessed 12 August 2019.
804 - Christian Lowe, “Lithuanians send nuclear plant back to drawing board”, Reuters, 15 October 2012,see http://www.reuters.com/article/us-lithuania-nuclear-idUSBRE89E0BW20121015, accessed 22 April 2018.
805 - NIW, “Lithuania—Prospective PM Wants to Scrape Visaginas”, 9 November 2012.
806 - The Baltic Course, “Masiulis: Visaginas NPP project has been shelved for now”, 20 January 2016,see http://www.baltic-course.com/eng/energy/?doc=115564, accessed 22 April 2018.

| 188

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 Poland planned the development of a series of nuclear power stations in the 1980s and started
construction of two VVER1000/320 reactors in Żarnowiec on the Baltic coast, but bothconstruction and further plans were halted following the Chernobyl accident. In 2008, however,Poland announced that it was going to re-enter the nuclear arena and in November 2010,
the Ministry of Economy put forward a Nuclear Energy Program. On 28 January 2014, thePolish Government adopted a document with the title “Polish Nuclear Power Programme”
outlining the framework of the strategy. The plan included proposals to build 6 GW of nuclear
power capacity with the first reactor starting up by 2024.807 The reactor types then underconsideration included AREVA’s EPR, Westinghouse’s AP‑1000, and Hitachi-GE’s Advanced
Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR).
In January 2013, the Polish utility PGE (Polska Grupa Energetyczna) had selected
WorleyParsons to conduct a five-year, US$81.5 million study, on the siting and development of a
nuclear power plant with a capacity of up to 3 GW.808 At that time, the project was estimated tocost US$13–19 billion, site selection was to have been completed by 2016, and construction was
to begin in 2019.809 A number of vendors, including AREVA, Westinghouse, and GE-Hitachi,
all lobbied Warsaw aggressively.810 PGE formed a project company PGE EJ1, which also had aten percent participation of each of the other large Polish utilities, Tauron Polska Energia andEnea, as well as the State Mining and Metallurgical Combine (KGHM). In January 2014, PGE
EJ1 received four bids from companies looking to become the company’s “Owner’s Engineer”
to help in the tendering and development of the project, which was eventually awarded to
Amec Nuclear U.K. in July 2014. The timetable demanded that PGE make a final investment
decision on the two plants by early 2017.811 That did not happen.
In December 2017, the rating agency Fitch warned that “if the utilities decide to get involved inbuilding the nuclear power plant and put it on their balance sheets then certainly, we will havea close look as this may be negative for the ratings.” This is because Polish utilities are already“substantially leveraged” and the massive cost of nuclear investment would be problematic.
Furthermore, the agency suggested that offshore wind, with falling technology costs, would be
more economic.812
The Polish General Directorate for the Environment (GDOS) started, in December 2015, thescoping phase for the Environmental Impact Assessment for the first Polish nuclear power
station with a notification to states within 1,000 km from the proposed three sites. Directly
after the start of this scoping phase, PGE EJ1 informed GDOS that it was withdrawing one of
the three proposed sites, at Choczewo, because of the potential impacts on protected nature

807 - Polish Ministry of Economy, “Polish Nuclear Power Programme”, National Atomic Energy Agency, January 2014,see http://www.paa.gov.pl/sites/default/files/PPEJ%20eng.2014.pdf, accessed 17 August 2018.
808 - NIW, “Briefs—Poland”, 8 February 2013.
809 - The Economist, “Polish Energy, Going nuclear”, 31 January 2014,see http://www.economist.com/blogs/easternapproaches/2014/01/polish-energy, accessed 24 April 2018.
810 - NEI, “Potential and Existing Global Nuclear Newbuild Projects”, 25 April 2014.
811 - Nucnet, “Amec Wins USD 430 Million Contract To Support Polish New-Build”, 9 July 2014, see https://www.nucnet.org/all-thenews/2014/07/21/amec-wins-usd-430-million-contract-to-support-polish-new-build, accessed 24 April 2018.
812 - Agnieszka Barteczko, Anna Koper, “Funding nuclear project could hit Polish utilities’ ratings: Fitch”, Reuters, 8 December 2017,see https://www.reuters.com/article/us-poland-nuclear/funding-nuclear-project-could-hit-polish-utilities-ratings-fitchidUSKBN1E21YM, accessed 30 June 2018.

| 189

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 areas. In March 2017, PGE EJ1 began, again, environmental assessment and site selection at
only two sites, both in the Northern province of Pomerania, due to be completed in 2020.813
However, the decisions have not been taken, and in late 2017, the Energy Minister,
Krzysztof Tchórzewski, said that he would like to see Poland build three nuclear reactors, atfive-yearly intervals, the first to operate in 2029, with each unit costing US$7 billion.814 The
financial model being proposed by the Government is not clear, although it has previously said
that it would adopt the strike-price model then favored in the U.K.
In November 2018, the Government published a draft strategic energy development program,which called for the construction of four reactors (providing between 6–10 GW of capacity) by
2040, with the first in operation by 2033815, a decade later than a plan published just five years
earlier. The Ministry of Energy envisages that the selection of location for the first plant would
be made in 2020, while the selection of the technology would be in 2021.816

VietnamA decision by the Prime Minster of Vietnam of July 2011 stated that by 2020 the first nuclear
power plant will be in operation, with a further 7 GW of capacity to be in operation by 2025 andtotal of 10.7 GW in operation by 2030. In October 2010, Vietnam signed an intergovernmental
agreement with Russia’s Atomstroyexport to build the Ninh Thuan-1 nuclear power plant,
using 1200 MW VVER reactors. Construction was slated to begin in 2014, with the turnkey
project being owned and operated by the state utility Electricity of Vietnam (EVN). However,numerous delays have occurred and the national electricity development plan, approved by
the government in March 2016, envisioned the “first nuclear power plant put into operation in2028”.817 At the same time, the revised “National Power Master Plan”—likely the same as the“national electricity development plan”—suggested a diminishing role for nuclear power from
10.1 percent to 5.7 percent by 2030.818
Vietnam’s nuclear power ambitions were severely curtailed in November 2016, when
92 percent of the members of the National Assembly approved a government motion to cancel
the proposed nuclear projects with both Russia and Japan, due to slowing electricity demand
increases, concerns of safety and rising construction costs.819 While Vietnam has signed

813 - NEI, “Site Studies begin for Poland’s first NPP”, 12 April 2017, see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newssite-studies-begin-forpolands-first-npp-5784946/, accessed 24 April 2018.
814 - Wojciech Zurawski, Agnieszka Barteczko “Poland may have first nuclear power plant by 2029”, Reuters, 6 September 2017,see https://www.reuters.com/article/poland-nuclear/poland-may-have-first-nuclear-power-plant-by-2029-idUSL8N1LN222, accessed
24 April 2018.
815 - Gary Peach, “Power Demand in Poland Bolsters Case for Nuclear”, NIW, 11 November 2018.
816 - WNN, “Poland already preparing for nuclear plant, says energy minister”, 16 May 2019,see https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Poland-already-preparing-for-nuclear-plant,-says-e, accessed 14 June 2019.
817 - VietNamNet, “Vietnam needs US$148 billion to develop national electricity until 2030”, 20 March 2016,see http://english.vietnamnet.vn/fms/society/152739/vietnam-needs-us-148-billion-to-develop-national-electricity-until-2030.html,
accessed 22 April 2018.
818 - Viet Phuong Nguyen, “The fate of nuclear power in Vietnam”, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, 5 December 2016,see https://thebulletin.org/fate-nuclear-power-vietnam10245, accessed 22 April 2018.
819 - NIW, “Briefs - Vietnam”, 28 November 2016.

| 190

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

nuclear cooperation agreements with Russia (July 2017)820, China (November 2017)821 andIndia (March 2018)822, a December 2018 presentation in China by a senior official of Vietnam’s
electricity company EVN on “Intelligent Clean Energy” does not even mention the term
“nuclear”.823“COMMITTED PLANS”
The fortunes of the two countries in the World Nuclear Association’s (WNA) “committed
plans” category differ considerably. In the case of Egypt, once again through concessional
financing from Russia, the project seems to be making progress, but in Jordan the prospectof building any of the current generation of designs has all but vanished and a future program
would, if it is developed at all, rely on future Gen IV designs.

Egypt
In Egypt, the government’s Nuclear Power Plants Authority was established in the mid-1970s,
and plans were developed for 10 reactors by the end of the century. Despite discussions with
Chinese, French, German, and Russian suppliers, little development occurred for several
decades.
In February 2015, Russia’s Rosatom and Egypt’s Nuclear Power Plant Authority eventually did
sign an agreement, followed in November 2015 by an intergovernmental agreement for theconstruction of four VVER‑1200 reactors at Dabaa, 130 km northwest of Cairo. The deal wasapparently worth €20–22 billion (US$23–27 billion), with Russia providing up to 90 percentof the finance, to be paid back through the sale of electricity. In May 2016, it was announced
that Egypt concluded a US$25 billion loan with Russia for nuclear construction. According
to the Egyptian official journal, the loan is to cover 85 percent of the project cost, with thetotal investment thus estimated at around US$29.4 billion. In March 2017, Ayman Hamza, aspokesman of the Egyptian Ministry for Electricity, said that contracts for construction works
and for training of personnel had been signed with Russia and that commercial contracts were
expected to be signed later in 2017.824 In April 2017, the Energy and Environment Committee of
the Parliament began discussions about regulating nuclear construction in Egypt.
In December 2017, Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachov and Mohamed Shaker, Egypt’s
Energy Minister signed a notice to proceed with construction as well as an agreement that“spans the power plant’s entire life cycle, i.e. 70 to 80 years”. The total cost of the project
was now reported to be US$60 billion including US$30 billion for the reactor construction.
Three other deals were signed to cover the supply of nuclear fuel for 60 years, operation and820 - WNN, “Russia signs MOU for Vietnam nuclear research centre”, 4 July 2017,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Russia-signs-MOU-for-Vietnam-nuclear-research-centre-0407175.html, accessed 22 April 2018.
821 - WNN, “China and Vietnam to cooperate on nuclear safety”, 13 November 2017,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/RS-China-and-Vietnam-to-cooperate-on-nuclear-safety-1311175.html, accessed 22 April 2018.
822 - WNN, “India and Vietnam enhance nuclear cooperation”, 5 March 2018,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NP-India-and-Vietnam-enhance-nuclear-cooperation-0503185.html, accessed 22 April 2018.
823 - EVN, “Intelligent Clean Energy—Viet Nam’s experience”, International Forum for Clean Energy, Macao, December 2018.
824 - NEI, “Egypt and Russia agree on two contracts for El Dabaa NPP”, 20 March 2017, see https://www.neimagazine.com/news/
newsegypt-and-russia-agree-on-two-contracts-for-el-dabaa-npp-5765715/, accessed 14 June 2019.

| 191

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 maintenance for the first 10 years of operation and operating and training of personnel. Russia
would supply a loan of US$25 billion, at three percent interest for 85 percent of the construction
cost. The Egyptian government agreed to repay over 22 years starting in 2029.
The next two and half years will focus on the site preparation and licensing. According to
Anatolos Kovatnov, the head of engineering work at the Dabaa project, Rosatom has submitted
all the documents required, and hopes to obtain the permits to start construction at the firstunit of the Dabaa plant by 2020. In March 2019, the Egyptian Nuclear Plants Authority granted
the site a permit for the reactors, which is the first step in getting the construction permit.825
With construction expected to take five years, the completion of the project is now expected
in 2026/27. However, questions have been raised as to whether the Nuclear and Radiological
Regulatory Authority will have the capacity and political independence to effectively oversee
the project.

JordanInfluential policymakers in Jordan have long desired the acquisition of a nuclear power plant.
In 2007, the government established the Jordan Atomic Energy Commission (JAEC) and the
Jordan Nuclear Regulatory Commission. JAEC started conducting a feasibility study on nuclear
power, including a comparative cost/benefit analysis.826
In September 2014, JAEC and Rosatom signed a two-year development framework for a project,which was projected to cost under US$10 billion and generate electricity costing US$0.10/
kWh.827
In March 2018, the nuclear industry and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Information
Administration continued to project that construction would start in 2019 and that two
1000 MW reactors would be completed by 2024.828 But in May 2018, an unnamed Jordanian
government official revealed to The Jordan Times that the plan to build two 1000 MW “is now
over”, and that “Jordan is now focusing on small modular reactors because the large reactors
place financial burden on the Kingdom and in light of the current fiscal conditions we believe it
is best to focus on smaller reactors”.829 This was confirmed the following month by JAEC whichstated: “Jordan and Russia held a meeting last year to discuss means to move forward with the
project and how to secure necessary finance for the plant… The Russians requested obtaining
loans from commercial banks, which would have increased the cost of the project and the pricesof generated electricity. The Jordanian government rejected the proposal”.830 This suggests not
only that Jordan was unable to secure financing for the two 1000 MW proposal, but also that
Russia is unable to provide low-interest financing.
825 - NEI, “Egypt’s El-Dabaa NPP granted site permit”, 16 April 2019,see https://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsegypts-el-dabaa-npp-granted-site-permit-7156405/, accessed 14 June 2019.
826 - Mark Hibbs, “Jordan reactor siting study to be done in 2009, JAEC says”, NW, 27 September 2007.
827 - NIW, “Briefs—Jordan”, 18 April 2014.
828 - WNN, “Middle East nuclear power to quadruple in ten years”, 6 March 2018,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NP-Middle-East-nuclear-power-to-quadruple-in-ten-years-06031801.html, accessed 24 April 2018.
829 - Mohammad Ghazal, “Jordan to replace planned nuclear plant with smaller, cheaper facility”, Jordan Times, 26 May 2018,see http://www.jordantimes.com/news/local/jordan-replace-planned-nuclear-plant-smaller-cheaper-facility, accessed 1 June 2018.
830 - Mohammad Ghazal, “Funding issues behind scrapping nuclear deal with Russia”, Jordan Times, 12 June 2018,see http://www.jordantimes.com/news/local/funding-issues-behind-scrapping-nuclear-deal-russia-%E2%80%94-jaec, accessed 5 July 2018.

| 192

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Jordan has been focusing on small modular reactors in the last year after it dropped plans
to construct Russian VVERs. The Chairman of JAEC explained this focus at an International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) conference in November 2018 by arguing “the proposed project
to build a nuclear power plant relying on Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) seems to be the more
appropriate in bridging the gap in the Jordanian electricity generation mix”.831 It is reported
that the chosen site for the SMR is Aqaba on the Red Sea “due to its proximity to industrial andtransportation infrastructure”.832
JAEC has entered into agreements with King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy,
Rolls‑Royce, and NuScale to carry out feasibility studies to construct SMRs.833 Of course, sincenone of these designs are really ready, especially Rolls‑Royce, these feasibility studies can only
be based on hypothetical numbers.
The Government is updating its National Energy Strategy 2030, where renewables are expected
to play a more important role due to the success of solar and wind deployment, rising from
2 percent to 10 percent of national electricity supply since 2014. Energy Minister Hala Zawatim,
said in late 2018 that renewable energy should provide more than 20 percent of the country’s
electricity by 2020834 , doubling the previous target835.

“WELL DEVELOPED PLANS”
Under the World Nuclear Association’s (WNA) definition these countries have plans that are
well developed but are still to make a full commitment to nuclear power. In many of thesecountries, the likelihood of further development is diminishing as political enthusiasm wanes
and the economics of alternatives become more advantageous.

Indonesia
Since the mid-1970s, Indonesia has discussed and brought forward plans to develop nuclear
power, releasing its first feasibility study, supported by the Italian government, in 1976. The
analysis was updated in the mid-1980s with help from the IAEA, the U.S., France and Italy.
Numerous discussions took place over the following decade, and by 1997 a Nuclear Energy Law
was adopted that gave guidance on construction, operation, and decommissioning. A decade831 - Khaled Toukan, “Speech of H.E. Dr. Khaled Toukan, Chairman, Jordan Atomic Energy Commission”, presented at the Ministerial
Conference on Nuclear Science and Technology: Addressing Current and Emerging Development Challenges, 28 November 2018,see https://www.iaea.org/events/ministerial-conference-on-nuclear-science-and-technology-2018/statements, accessed 24 June 2019.
832 - Joy Nasr and Ali Ahmad, “Middle East Nuclear Energy Monitor: Country Perspectives 2018”, Energy Policy and Security Program,Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs, American University of Beirut, January 2019.
833 - WNN, “Jordan and Saudi Arabia team up on uranium, SMRs”, 29 March 2017, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/
Jordan-and-Saudi-Arabia-team-up-on-uranium,-SMRs, accessed 24 June 2019; and WNN, “NuScale SMR to be considered for use in
Jordan”, 15 January 2019, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/NuScale-SMR-to-be-considered-for-use-in-Jordan, accessed
24 June 2019; also WNN, “Rolls-Royce to conduct SMR study for Jordan”, 9 November 2017, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/
NN-Rolls-Royce-to-conduct-SMR-study-for-Jordan-09111702.html, accessed 24 April 2018.
834 - The Jordan Times, “‘20% of country’s energy mix to be supplied from renewable sources by 2020’”, 11 December 2018,see http://www.jordantimes.com/news/local/%E2%80%9820-countrys-energy-mix-be-supplied-renewable-sources-2020%E2%80%99,
accessed 23 July 2019.
835 - U.S. Department of Commerce , International Trade Administration, “Jordan - Renewable Energy”, Export.gov, 23 February 2017,see https://www.export.gov/article?id=Jordan-Renewable-Energy, accessed 7 May 2018.

| 193

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 later, the 2007 Law on National Long-Term Development Planning for 2005–25 stipulated thatbetween 2015 and 2019, four units should be completed with an installed capacity of 6 GW.836
In July 2007, Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) and Korea Hydro & Nuclear PowerCo. (KHNP) signed a memorandum of understanding with Indonesia’s PT Medco Energi
Internasional to undertake a feasibility study for building two 1000 MW units at a costof US$3 billion. Then, in December 2015, the Indonesian government pulled the plug on all
nuclear plans, even for the longer-term future. Trade journal Nuclear Engineering International(NEI) cited the Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said: “We have arrived at
the conclusion that this is not the time to build up nuclear power capacity. We still have many
alternatives and we do not need to raise any controversies.”837
According to the IAEA, in 2017, the Indonesian government continued to work on a roadmap
for nuclear energy development, but that nuclear energy is “a last resort in the national energy
policy”.838 The latest revision of the new and renewable energy policy mix mentions that
nuclear will be only considered should the renewable energy target not be achieved in 2025. 839
Despite this, research is ongoing and in March 2018, the National Nuclear Energy Agency
launched a roadmap for the development of the design of a domestic Small Modular Reactor,
which was due to completed by the end of the year.840

Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan is the world’s largest producer of uranium, with about 40 percent of the global
total. It operated a small fast breeder reactor, the BN 350 at Aktau, during 1972–1999. A numberof countries, including Russia, Japan, South Korea, and China have signed co-operationagreements with Kazakhstan for the development of nuclear power.
In 2014, President Nursultan Nazarbayev used his State of the Nation address to highlightthe need to develop nuclear power. Since then, negotiations have continued, particularly with
Toshiba-Westinghouse of Japan and Rosatom of Russia.841 In October 2015, the Vice Ministerof Energy Bakhytzhan Dzhaksaliyev said that finding a suitable site and strategic partner may

836 - Hanan Nugroho, “Development of Nuclear Power in Indonesia: Stop or Go?”, Jakarta Post, 5 May 2010,see http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2010/05/05/development-nuclear-power-indonesia-stop-or-go.html, accessed 26 April 2017.
837 - NEI, “Indonesia rules out nuclear as major power source”, 14 December 2015,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsindonesia-rules-out-nuclear-as-major-power-source-4752814, accessed 15 December 2015.
838 - IAEA, “Indonesia—Country Nuclear Power Profiles”, Update 2017, see https://cnpp.iaea.org/countryprofiles/Indonesia/Indonesia.
htm, accessed 24 April 2018.
839 - Asean Centre for Energy, “Pre-feasbility study on the establishment of nuclear power plant in Asea”, April 2018, see http://www.
aseanenergy.org/resources/pre-feasibility-study-on-the-establishment-of-nuclear-power-plant-in-asean/, accessed 16 June 2019.
840 - WNN, “Progress with Indonesian SMR project”, 16 March 2018,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Progress-in-Indonesian-SMR-project-1603184.html, accessed 30 June 2018.
841 - WNN, “Russia and Kazakhstan to ink nuclear power accord this year”, 2 March 2016, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NPRussia-and-Kazakhstan-to-ink-nuclear-power-accord-this-year-02031601.html, accessed 24 April 2018.

| 194

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

take two to three years.842 In December 2015, a draft Atomic Energy Law was referred to the
Senate, in order to address licensing, security, environmental protection rules and standards.843
In the following years, Kazakhstan has had a number of discussions with countries and reactor
suppliers. In August 2017, Kazakhstan and the U.S. signed a nuclear cooperation agreement.
According to Kazakh Energy Minister Kanat Bozumbayev, the agreement aims to “focus oncooperation in such areas as the peaceful use of nuclear energy, containment of carbon dioxide,sustainability of energy systems, opening and expansion of energy markets, as well as the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons and security”.844
Then in April 2019, during a meeting between President Putin of Russia and Kazakhstan’spresident Qasym‑Zhomart Toqaev, it was suggested that Russia help in the construction ofa nuclear power plant at Ulken in the southeastern Almaty Province. Soon after this, Deputy
Kazakh Energy Minister Magzum Mirzagaliev said there was no “concrete decision” toconstruct a nuclear power plant in Kazakhstan.845
Press in the region report that the critically acclaimed HBO series “Chernobyl” is increasing
public opposition to the proposals to the Russia nuclear deal, with Kazakhstani filmmaker
Zhanna Issabayeva in a Facebook post. “Never, never, never in Kazakhstan should there be anuclear power plant.”846

Saudi Arabia
In 2012, the IAEA suggested that by 2013 the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia might start building its
first nuclear reactor.847 The King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (KA‑CARE)
had earlier been set up in 2010 to advance this agenda, and in June 2011, the coordinator ofscientific collaboration at KA‑CARE announced plans to construct 16 nuclear power reactors
over the next 20 years at a cost of more than 300 billion riyals (US$80 billion). The first tworeactors were planned to be online ten years later and then two more per year until 2030.
During 2015, new cooperation agreements were signed with France, Russia, China andSouth Korea. The latter seemed to be the most advanced and with proposals for the building of
two “smart” reactors and ongoing research and collaboration.848 In March 2017, a cooperation

842 - Tengri News, “Kazakhstan to define location and strategic partners for its first nuclear power plant in 2-3 years”, 23 October 2015,see https://en.tengrinews.kz/industry_infrastructure/Kazakhstan-to-define-location-and-strategic-partners-for-its-262679/, accessed
24 April 2018.
843 - Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan, “Draft law on use of nuclear energy, as amended, referred to Senate”,
21 December 2015, see http://www.government.kz/en/novosti/29961-draft-law-on-use-of-nuclear-energy-as-amended-referred-tosenate.html, accessed 24 April 2018.
844 - Dana Omirgazy, “Kazakhstan, US agree to cooperate on nuclear energy”, The Astana Times, 30 August 2017,see https://astanatimes.com/2017/08/kazakhstan-us-agree-to-cooperate-on-nuclear-energy/, accessed 4 July 2018.
845 - Bruce Pannier, “Putin Offers Russian Help To Build Kazakh Nuclear Plant”, RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty, 6 April 2019,see https://www.rferl.org/a/kazakhstan-putin-offers-russian-nuclear-plant-help/29865177.html, accessed 19 April 2019.
846 - Eurasianet, “HBO’s Chernobyl stokes anti-nuclear mood in Kazakhstan”, 7 June 2019,see https://eurasianet.org/hbos-chernobyl-stokes-anti-nuclear-mood-in-kazakhstan, accessed 16 June 2019.
847 - Lucas W. Hixson, “IAEA—Vietnam and 4 other countries to incorporate nuclear energy after Fukushima”, Enformable.com,
24 February 2012, see http://enformable.com/2012/02/iaea-vietnam-and-4-other-countries-to-incorporate-nuclear-energy-afterfukushima/, accessed 26 April 2017.
848 - NIW, “Saudi Arabia, Will Water Scarcity Spur Nuclear Growth?”, 31 July 2015.

| 195

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 agreement was signed with China Nuclear Engineering Group Corporation (CNEC) on thedevelopment of high-temperature gas cooled reactors.849
In a reiterated push for the deployment of nuclear power a new domestic target of 17.6 GW by
2021 was put forward. In March 2018, the Government approved a national nuclear program,which is said to include a shortlist of bidders (China, France, Russia, South Korea and UnitedStates) with reports suggesting contracts for the construction of two reactors expected by
2018,850 and planned commissioning in 2027,851 a target that has not been met. However, Energy
Minister Khalid al‑Falih said in January 2019 that his government still planned to build two
reactors in the next decade and then expand the program once these were in operation.852
The five vendors had been requested to supply information on financing frameworks as wellas technical information. Amongst the bidders, Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO)
is thought to be in a strong position, given its experience in the United Arab Emirates (UAE),
although Russia is also in contention due to a track record of offering finance. The French,
who are likely to offer the European Pressurized Water Reactor (EPR)—with only two reactors
in China newly commissioned—and along with China (Hualong One) are proposing relatively
untested designs and so may be viewed less favorably, just as is the U.S. bid, using the AP‑1000
technology of bankrupt Westinghouse.853
In mid 2018 the IAEA undertook an Integrated Nuclear Infrastructure Review (INIR).
Mikhail Chudakov, IAEA Deputy Director General and Head of the Department of Nuclear
Energy, stated on the completion of the review that Saudi Arabia had established a legislative
framework to support the next stage of nuclear development.854
Reuters reported in April 2019 that a full tender would be launched in 2020. “Saudi Arabia iscontinuing to make very deliberate steps forward although at a slower pace than originally
expected”—originally it was proposed to select a vendor in 2018.855 The murder of Saudi
journalist Jamal Khashoggi in October 2018 led a number of countries to reduce their
engagement with the Kingdom. Importation of equipment from the United States will require
the signing of a Nuclear Co-operation Agreement (123 Agreement). However, there is increasingpressure to go further and include a requirement to forego reprocessing and/or processing,which is counter to previous Saudi insistence on their desire to fabricate their own fuel.856
849 - NEI, “Saudi Arabia looks to China and Korea for nuclear assistance”, 20 March 2017, see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/
newssaudi-arabia-looks-to-china-and-korea-for-nuclear-assistance-5767240/, accessed 25 April 2018.
850 - NEI, “Saudi Arabia approves national nuclear programme”, 19 March 2018,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newssaudi-arabia-approves-national-nuclear-programme-6087593/, accessed 25 April 2018.
851 - NEI, “Saudi Arabia to prequalify NPP bids by May”, 18 January 2018,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newssaudi-arabia-to-prequalify-npp-bids-by-may-6029868/, accessed 25 April 2018.
852 - Saudi Gazette, “Saudi Arabia to use N-energy for electricity production, asserts Al-Falih”, 16 January 2019,see http://saudigazette.com.sa/article/557047/SAUDI-ARABIA/Saudi-Arabia-to-use-N-energy-for-electricity-production-asserts-Al-Falih,accessed 14 April 2019.
853 - Phil Chaffee, “Ka-Care Hopes to Choose from Five Bids by Year’s End”, NIW, 19 January 2018.
854 - IAEA, “IAEA Delivers Report on Nuclear Power Infrastructure Development to Saudi Arabia”, 25 January 2019, see https://www.
iaea.org/newscenter/news/iaea-delivers-report-on-nuclear-power-infrastructure-development-to-saudi-arabia, accessed 16 June 2019.
855 - Sylvia Westall, “Saudi plans to invite bids for nuclear power project in 2020: sources”, Reuters, 4 April 2019,see https://uk.reuters.com/article/us-saudi-nuclear/saudi-plans-to-invite-bids-for-nuclear-power-project-in-2020-sourcesidUKKCN1RG1LL, accessed 9 April 2019.
856 - Timothy Gardner, “U.S. Senate proposal would block Saudi path to atomic weapon in nuclear deal”, Reuters, 13 February 2019,see https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-nuclear-saudi/u-s-senate-proposal-would-block-saudi-path-to-atomic-weapon-in-nucleardeal-idUSKCN1Q12UT, accessed 9 April 2019.

| 196

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Despite this, Reuters reported that U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry has approved six secretauthorizations by companies to sell nuclear power technology. Perry’s approvals, known asPart 810 authorizations, allow companies to do preliminary work on nuclear power ahead ofany deal.857
Concerns have been raised about the connection the Saudi leadership has expressed between
the civil nuclear program and the desire to acquire nuclear weapons. In March 2018, Prince
Mohammed bin Salman (MbS) told CBS News, “Saudi Arabia does not want to acquire any
nuclear bomb, but without a doubt if Iran developed a nuclear bomb, we will follow suit as soon
as possible.”858 An active civil nuclear program would enable the country to develop a nuclear
weapons program much more rapidly.

ThailandThe National Energy Policy Council of Thailand in 2007 proposed that up to 5 GW of capacity
be operational between 2020 and 2028. However, this target will not be met for a numberof reasons, including significant local opposition at the proposed sites. The latest proposal
from the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) is for two 1 GW units to be
operational by 2036, although no location has been named.859 Thailand’s largest private powercompany has announced that it will invest US$200 million for a 10 percent stake of the China
General Nuclear Power Corporation (CGN) and Guangxi Investment Group’s Fangchenggang
nuclear power plant in China.860 CGN obviously eyes a role in the potential, although veryvague, nuclear project in Thailand.
Meanwhile in 2018, the Government announced plans to double the use of renewable energy,
so it would provide 30 percent of capacity by 2030, up from 14.5 percent today.861

Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan has announced that it intends to develop nuclear power with the help of Russia.
In preparation, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev signed a decree in July 2018 to develop nuclear
power in Uzbekistan and created UzAtom, the Uzbek Agency for Nuclear Energy. UzAtom’s
remit includes developing policy and law; attracting investment and financing; technology
and safety; the execution of contracts for designing and building the country’s new nuclear
facilities; ensuring regulatory best practice in collaboration with the IAEA.862
857 - Timothy Gardner, “U.S. approved secret nuclear power work for Saudi Arabia”, Reuters, 28 March 2019,see https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-saudi-nuclear-idUSKCN1R82MG, accessed 4 May 2019.
858 - Aileen Murphy, M.V. Ramana, “The Trump administration is eager to sell nuclear reactors to Saudi Arabia. But why?”, Bulletin of
the Atomic Scientists, 16 April 2019, see https://thebulletin.org/2019/04/the-trump-administration-is-eager-to-sell-nuclear-reactorsto-saudi-arabia-but-why/, accessed 4 May 2019.
859 - WNA, “Emerging Nuclear Energy Countries”, July 2018.
860 - WNN, “Thai power company buys into Fangchenggang II”, 25 January 2018,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Thai-power-company-buys-into-Fangchenggang-II-2501164.html, accessed 25 April 2018.
861 - Bangkok Post, “State targets 30% renewable power by 2030”, 20 July 2018,see https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/news/1506658/state-targets-30-renewable-power-by-2030, accessed 16 June 2019.
862 - fDi Intelligence, “UzAtom chief explains why Uzbekistan is taking the nuclear route”, 14 February 2019,see https://www.fdiintelligence.com/Sectors/UzAtom-chief-explains-why-Uzbekistan-is-taking-the-nuclear-route, accessed 16 June 2019.

| 197

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 198

In an April 2019 interview with Nuclear Engineering International (NEI), Jurabek
Mirzamakhmudov, director general of UzAtom, has said that it intends to carry out siteanalysis over the next 18 months at three locations. Mirzamakhmudov says UzAtom has chosena VVER 1200 reactor design, which would be financed via a soft loan from Russia throughan engineering, procurement and construction agreement. The reactors would be used fordomestic use, but some of the power would also be exported to neighboring countries such as
Afghanistan.863
Table 16 | Summary of Potential Nuclear Newcomer Countries
Country

Proposed/Actual
Construction Start

Proposed
VendorReactor/Site

Initial PlannedStartup Date

Current PlannedStartup Date

November 201711/ 2017
7/2018

2023
2024

2013

2016

Q4 2019

2014

2018

7/2020Under Construction
Bangladesh

RooppurRosatom

Belarus

Ostrovets /Belarusian

RosatomTurkeyAkkuyuRosatom

Barakah-1
UAE

Barakah-2
Barakah-3

KEPCO

Barakah-4

2018

2015

2024

2012

2017

2020

2013

2018

2021

2014

2019

2022

2015

2020

2023

Suspended

-

-

?

-

-

Suspended--

Contract Signed or Advanced Development
Lithuania

Visegrade

PolandVietnam

Hitachi?

Ninh Thuan

Rosatom“Committed Plans”
Egypt

Rosatom

2018

-

-

JordanRosatom

Abandoned

-

-

Sinop

Mitsubishi/Areva

Abandoned--

IngeadaSNPTC/WH

2019

-

-

Turkey“Well Developed Plans”
Indonesia

Rosatom

Indefinitely Postponed--

Kazakhstan

Rosatom?

--

Saudi Arabia

?

?

-

-

Thailand

?

?

-

-

Uzbekistan

Rosatom?

--

Sources: Various, compiled by WNISR, 2019863 - NEI, “Uzbekistan’s nuclear aspirations”, 9 April 2019,see https://www.neimagazine.com/features/featureuzbekistans-nuclear-aspirations-7145738/, accessed 19 April 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

CONCLUSION ON POTENTIALNEWCOMER COUNTRIES2018 has been a mixed year for the development of new nuclear power programs. In the UAE,
which for over a decade has been held up as a role model for potential newcomer countries,
increasing construction and personnel issues are coming to light, leading to even more delays
and even higher costs. Operation of Barakah-1 in the UAE is now expected in 2020, some three
years late. In Belarus, no startup rescheduling has been made public over the past few years,
and the present year will show whether the current timetables for commissioning in late 2019are accurate. Construction is ongoing in Bangladesh, where work on a second reactor started
in 2018, and in Turkey, although at such an early stage that monitoring of progress is difficult.
Of all the other countries, Egypt has the most concrete plans. Delays and abandonments
have been experienced in all the other countries that the WNA surprisingly categorizes as ina stage of advanced development or with committed plans. The stop/start developments in
Saudi Arabia seem to have taken a step forward in the past year, although wider geopoliticaldevelopments may hinder co-operation with a number of countries and thus further progress.
(See Table 16 for overview).
What is clear is that Russia remains the dominant proposed exporter, actively promoting its
technology with concessional financial packages and fuel services that appear attractive to asmall number of countries, if Russia—with its state finances in serious difficulties—can afford
to deliver.

| 199

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 200

SMALL MODULAR REACTORS
Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) continue to attract inordinate attention. SMRs as well asother “advanced reactor” designs are often positioned as a solution to one or more of the
problems confronting nuclear power.864 Although talked about as physical reactors, most
SMRs are only theoretical designs, and all too often at a very initial stage of development.
At the same time, there has been a long history of promotion of SMRs premised on rapid
commercialization and expansion, none of which has come true. Based on such expectations,several countries, especially the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom, are putting
in place processes and policies to promote these designs.865 What follows is an update of earlier
analysis (in particular WNISR2015 and WNISR2017) on SMR programs in selected countries(in alphabetical order).

ARGENTINAThe CAREM-25 reactor has been under construction in Argentina since February 2014.866 When
construction started, Argentina’s Comision Nacional de Energia Atómica (CNEA) announced
that CAREM‑25 would begin cold testing in 2016 and receive its first fuel load in the second
half of 2017.867 By 2018, this date had been pushed back to 2020.868 As of mid‑2019, the unit isexpected to start up in late 2021 or 2022.

CANADAIn the past two years, Canada has emerged as the site of an aggressive push to develop
SMRs, led by the chief institutional promoters of nuclear energy in the country, including theCanadian Nuclear Association and Natural Resources Canada (NRCan). In November 2018,
NRCan published the Canadian Small Modular Reactor (SMR) Roadmap.869 Unlike in othercountries, SMRs are being promoted in Canada as potentially aimed at meeting the electricity

864 - The acronym SMR is also used to mean “small and medium-sized reactor” by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
For the IAEA, a ‘‘small’’ reactor is one having electrical output less than 300 MWe and a ‘‘medium’’ reactor is one having a power
output between 300 MWe and 700 MWe.
865 - The exact number of SMR designs under development is unclear because many designs are dormant. In one 2018 document, theInternational Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) states that currently “there are around 20 primary SMR designs under development in
10 countries (Argentina, China, France, India, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, South Africa, and the UnitedStates of America) for domestic energy production and, in the case of some designs, for commercial export”; see IAEA, “Deployment
indicators for small modular reactors”, 2018. But another IAEA document from 2018 lists 56 SMR designs; see IAEA, “Advances in
Small Modular Reactor Technology Developments—A Supplement to: IAEA Advanced Reactors Information System (ARIS)—2018
Edition”, September 2018, see https://aris.iaea.org/Publications/SMR-Book_2018.pdf, accessed 30 August 2019.
866 - WNN, “Construction of CAREM underway”, 10 February 2014,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Construction-of-CAREM-underway-1002144.html, accessed 24 May 2019.
867 - Ibidem.
868 - NEI, “Progress for Argentina’s CAREM SMR”, 9 May 2018,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsprogress-for-argentinas-carem-smr-6144828, accessed 19 May 2018.
869 - CNS, “SMR Roadmap Launch”, Canadian Nuclear Society, 30 September 2018,see https://www.cns-snc.ca/events/g4sr1/, accessed 30 September 2018.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

needs of remote communities and mines (in the northern part of the country),870 and toprocess tar sands.871 However, these markets are insufficient to develop the facilities needed
to manufacture those SMRs, and the costs of the electricity from any reactors small enough topower a remote mine or community would be prohibitively high.872
The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) has also for many years expressed its
readiness to license SMRs, touting its “appropriate regulatory framework and internal
processes in place for the timely and efficient licensing of all types of reactor, regardless ofsize” and offers what it calls “a technology neutral approach” and offers “a pre-licensing vendor
design review”, an optional service for SMR vendors.873 However, pre-licensing vendor design
review does not lead to any regulatory decision.
The CNSC’s pre-licensing vendor design review takes place in three phases. The first phase
involves “an overall assessment of the vendor’s nuclear power plant design against the mostrecent CNSC design requirements for new nuclear power plants in Canada” as well as “all otherrelated CNSC regulatory documents and Canadian codes & standards”. The second phasefocuses on “identifying any potential fundamental barriers to licensing the vendor’s nuclear
power plant design in Canada”. The third phase “allows the vendor to follow-up on certain
aspects of Phase 2 findings by:ɆɆ seeking more information from the CNSC about a Phase 2 topic; and/or
ɆɆ asking the CNSC to review activities taken by the vendor towards the reactor’s design
readiness, following the completion of Phase 2”.874
As of May 2019, there are 11 designs at various stages of this process, according to CNSC.875
Those agreements in force are listed in Table 17. Agreements under development are listed inTable 18.

870 - HATCH, “SMR Deployment Feasibility Study—Feasibility of the Potential Deployment of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs)
in Ontario”, Ontario Ministry of Energy, June 2016, see http://ontarioenergyreport.ca/pdfs/MOE%20-%20Feasibility%20Study_
SMRs%20-%20June%202016.pdf, accessed 10 May 2018; and CNL, “Perspectives on Canada’s SMR Opportunity”, Canadian Nuclear
Laboratories, October 2017, see http://www.cnl.ca/site/media/Parent/CNL_SmModularReactor_Report.pdf, accessed 27 June 2018.
871 - Sarah Rieger, “Small nuclear reactors could make Alberta’s oilsands cleaner, industry experts suggest”, CBC, 21 May 2019,see https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/nuclear-power-oilsands-1.5142864, accessed 30 May 2019.
872 - Sarah Froese, Nadja C. Kunz and M.V. Ramana, “Too Small to be Viable? The Potential Market for Small Modular Reactors in
Mining and Remote Communities in Canada”, Energy Policy, submitted as of July 2019.
873 - S. Herstead, M. de Vos and S. Cook, “Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission: Readiness to Regulate SMRs in Canada”, American
Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), ASME 2011 Small Modular Reactors Symposium, 28 September 2011,see http://dx.doi.org/10.1115/SMR2011-6561, accessed 8 October 2018.
874 - CNSC, “Pre-Licensing Vendor Design Review”, Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, 26 March 2019,see http://nuclearsafety.gc.ca/eng/reactors/power-plants/pre-licensing-vendor-design-review/index.cfm, accessed 28 May 2019.
875 - Ibidem.

| 201

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 202

Table 17 | Vendor design review service agreements in force between vendors and the CNSC
VendorName of designand cooling type

Approximate
electrical capacity(MW electrical)

StatusApril 2016

Complete

Phase 2

December
2018

Assessment inprogress

Phase 1

December
2016

Complete

Phase 2

Pending

Project start pending

3

Phase 1January 2017

On hold at vendor’srequest100

Phase 1

September
2017

Assessment inprogress

300

Series Phase
1 and 2

December2017

Phase 1 assessment inprogress

IMSR
Integral Molten Salt
Reactor200

Ultra Safe Nuclear
Corporation

MMR-5 and
MMR-10High-temperature gas

5-10

LeadCold Nuclear Inc.

SEALER
Molten Lead

Advanced Reactor
Concepts Ltd.

ARC-100
Liquid Sodium

Moltex Energy

Review
start datePhase 1

Terrestrial Energy Inc.

Moltex Energy Stable Salt
ReactorApplied for

Molten Salt
SMR, LLC. (A Holtec
International Company)

SMR-160 PressurizedLight Water

160

Phase 1

July 2018

Assessment inprogress

NuScale Power, LLC

NuScale Integral
pressurized water reactor

60

Phase 2*

Pending 2019

Project start pending
Source: CNSC, 2019

Notes
*Phase 1 objectives will be addressed within the Phase 2 scope of work

Table 18 | Vendor design review service agreement between vendors and the CNSC
under development
VendorName of design and coolingtype

Approximate
electrical capacity(MW electrical)

Application
received

Applied for

StarCore Nuclear

StarCore Module
High-temperature gas

10

October 2016

SeriesPhase 1 and 2

URENCO

U-BatteryHigh-temperature gas

4

February 2017

Phase 1

Westinghouse ElectricCompany, LLC

eVinci Micro Reactor solid coreand heat pipes

Various outputs up
to 25 MWeFebruary 2018

Phase 2*

GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy

BWRX-300 boiling water reactor

300

March 2019

Phase 2*

Notes

Source: CNSC, 2019

*Phase 1 objectives will be addressed within the Phase 2 scope of work

CHINA
China has pursued multiple SMR designs, but the only one currently under construction is theHigh Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (HTR) developed since the 1970s. Called the HTR‑PM,
the power plant being constructed at Shidaowan (Shidao Bay) in China’s eastern Shandong
province has a net capacity of 200 MW, with two 100 MW modules in one reactor building
driving one 200 MW turbine.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

The HTR‑PM received final approval from China’s cabinet and its national energy bureau in2011.876 But due to the changes in Chinese policy following the Fukushima accidents,877 it was
only on 9 December 2012 that construction of HTR‑PM commenced.878 According to the official
schedule, construction was to take 59 months,879 so the reactor should have started operatingin 2017. The current estimate is sometime “in the first half of 2020”.880
The main reason reported for the delay is that the design was incomplete and not ready forconstruction. A 2017 report by the project company’s marketing department technology had
reportedly described a situation where “research, design, engineering and construction” were“sometimes taking place simultaneously”. More specifically, there were “prolonged delays in
manufacturing two key pieces of equipment—the helium circulator and the steam generator.
While a prototype of the main helium circulator—referred to as the “heart” of the HTGR andsimilar to the reactor coolant pumps in pressurized water reactors—was completed in 2014,
the final product was only recently shipped to the site” [reported in April 2019].881
These problems seem to have convinced decisionmakers to call off earlier plans that envisioned
constructing a further nine units (18 modules) of the same type at the same site.882 That nolonger seems to be the case.883 Part of the reason might be the cost of generating electricity
at the plant, which is reported to be 60 fen884 (US8.4¢) per kilowatt‑hour, significantly higher
than the reported average 43 fen/kWh for Generation III reactors, and this has been listed as
one of the “key challenges” confronting HTGRs in China.885
In recent years, mainstream Chinese nuclear institutions have been promoting other SMR
designs: the ACPR‑50 and ACPR‑100 from China General Nuclear (CGN) and the ACP100
from China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC). All these designs have been in the news, asa result of an announcement that China was going to build maritime nuclear power platforms
in the South China Sea.886 CNNC and CGN have been working on these designs since around2010, but development and plans for deployment have clearly accelerated in the last couple ofyears, perhaps as a result of conflicts over islands in the South China Sea.

876 - Keith Bradsher, “China Building Nuclear Reactors With Radically Different Design”, The New York Times, 24 March 2011,see http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/25/business/energy-environment/25chinanuke.html, accessed 24 April 2012.
877 - Amy King, M.V. Ramana, “The China Syndrome? Nuclear Power Growth and Safety After Fukushima”, Asian Perspective, 2015.
878 - Zuoyi Zhang et al., “The Shandong Shidao Bay 200 MWe High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor Pebble-Bed Module (HTR‑PM)
Demonstration Power Plant: An Engineering and Technological Innovation”, Engineering, March 2016.
879 - Ibidem., p.112.
880 - C. F. Yu, “Progress on HTGR”, NIW, 26 April 2019.
881 - Ibidem.
882 - David Dalton, “China Begins Construction Of First Generation IV HTR-PM Unit”, NucNet, 7 January 2013,see http://www.nucnet.org/all-the-news/2013/01/07/china-begins-construction-of-first-generation-iv-htr-pm-unit, accessed
9 January 2013.
883 - WNN, “First vessel installed in China’s HTR-PM unit”, 21 March 2016,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/nn-first-vessel-installed-in-chinas-htr-pm-unit-2103164.html, accessed 25 February 2017.
884 - 100 fen = 1 yuan
885 - C. F. Yu, “CNEC-CFHI Deal—Boosting the HTGR Or Chinese Manufacturing?”, NIW, 9 September 2016.
886 - NEI, “China gets onboard”, 16 August 2016, see http://www.neimagazine.com/features/featurechina-gets-onboard-4980507/,
accessed 5 March 2017.

| 203

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

INDIA
India’s SMR offering is the Advanced Heavy Water Reactor (AHWR) design that has been
under development since the 1990s.887 There are two versions, one utilizing plutonium as fueland the other using low‑enriched uranium advertised as possessing “intrinsic proliferation
resistant features”.888
The AHWR continues to be delayed. In the early 2000s, construction of the first unit of thisdesign was projected to start in 2005.889 But even the 2017–18 “Annual Report” of India’s
Department of Atomic Energy stated that only a test station has been set up at the Bhabha
Atomic Research Centre in Mumbai “for validation of AHWR” Control & Instrumentation“system architecture, system application, development and integrated system testing offunctional, performance and safety requirements”.890 In other words, the AHWR design is not
yet complete and it is unlikely that construction of the AHWR will start anytime soon.

RUSSIA
Russia has a number of SMR designs under development but only one of them has advanced
to construction. The first two reactors of the KLT‑40S design are placed on a ship called the
Akademik Lomonosov and together they constitute the small nuclear plant that Russia hopes
to sell to remote coastal communities. However, the Akademik Lomonosov itself is intended
to “supply electricity to settlements and companies extracting hydrocarbons and precious
stones in the Chukotka region” and the residents of these areas “are key for Russian plans to
tap into the hidden Arctic riches of oil and gas as Siberian reserves diminish”.891 Thus, nuclear
power, if and when it is produced by these KLT‑40S reactors, will contribute to carbon dioxide
emissions.
In November 2018, the first of the two reactors attained criticality.892 So far, there have been
no reports of the second reactor’s criticality. Akademik Lomonosov was reported to be towed
to the port of Pevek on the Chukotka Peninsula in the east Arctic893 , starting in August 2019.
The ship’s construction has taken at least four times as long as originally projected; a little
before construction of the ship began in 2007, Rosatom announced that the plant would begin

887 - R. K. Sinha, Anil Kakodkar, “Advanced Heavy Water Reactor”, Nu-Power, 1999, xiii, 22–27.
888 - K. L. Ramkumar, “Th-LEU Fuel in AHWR to enhance proliferation resistance characteristics”, presented at the IAEA
3rd Technical Meeting on Options to incorporate intrinsic proliferation resistance features to Nuclear Power Plants with innovative
Small Modular Reactors, 15 August 2011.
889 - B. Bhattacharjee, “An Overview of R&D in Fuel Cycle Activities of AHWR”, in Nuclear fuel cycle technologies: closing the fuelcycle, 14th Indian Nuclear Society Annual Conference, 2003.
890 - DAE, “Annual Report 2017-2018”, Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India, 2018, see https://dae.nic.in/?q=node/855.
891 - Mary Ilyushina, “Russia plans to tow a nuclear power station to the Arctic. Critics dub it a ‘floating Chernobyl’”, CNN,
30 June 2019, see https://www.cnn.com/2019/06/28/europe/russia-arctic-floating-nuclear-power-station-intl/index.html, accessed
3 July 2019.
892 - Thomas Nilsen, “First reactor started at floating nuclear plant”, The Barents Observer, 2 November 2018,see https://thebarentsobserver.com/en/industry-and-energy/2018/11/first-reactor-started-floating-nuclear-plant, accessed 4 November 2018.
893 - Gary Peach, “Rosatom Pursues SMRs Across Multiple Platforms”, NIW, 17 May 2019.

| 204

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

to operate in October 2010.894 In July 2019, Rosatom announced “that it has completed andtransferred… the 70 MW Akademik Lomonosov floating nuclear power plant…to its subsidiary
Rosenergoatom Concern, which recently received a license from the nuclear regulator
Rostekhnadzor to operate the nuclear unit until 2029”.895
The projected cost rose too, from an initial estimate of around six billion rubles(US$2007232 million),896 to 37 billion rubles as of 2015 (US$2015740 million).897 The delays and highcost may have led Rosatom to conclude that there wouldn’t be a market for this configuration,and it is reported that the agency is now examining if a modified version of the RIT‑M200,
currently installed on Russian atomic icebreakers, could be modified and marketed.898
Two other SMR designs Russian developers have long been promoting are the SVBR‑100 and
the BREST-300. Both are fast reactor designs; the BREST‑300 is lead-cooled whereas the
SVBR‑100 is cooled by a lead-bismuth mixture. Both are now delayed. According to the official
Federal Target Program (FTP) titled “Nuclear power technologies of the new generation”, theconstruction of a prototype unit of the lead-cooled fast reactor BREST‑300 was to have started
in 2016.899 That has not happened so far. In October 2018, Rosatom announced that the reactor
will not begin operation before 2026.900
The FTP also called for the SVBR-100 lead-bismuth cooled fast reactor to be built before 2020.
But according to a government resolution adopted on 11 November 2017 on amending the FTP,
the construction of the SVBR‑100 was postponed beyond the horizon of 2020.901 According
to a July 2019 update of the World Nuclear Association (WNA), “in 2018 the project [was]dropped”.902 One reason for the delay and probable cancellation is that the reactor is reported
to have cost much more than initial estimates—36 billion rubles (US$632 million) as compared
to 15 billion rubles (US$262 million).903
894 - Rosatom, “The first offshore nuclear heat and electrical power plant of small capacity is planned to operate in October 2010 in
Severodvinsk (Arkhangelsk district)”, Press Release, 15 December 2006; and IPFM, “Global Fissile Material Report 2007 – Developing
the technical basis for policy initiatives to secure and irreversibly reduce stocks of nuclear weapons and fissile materials”, Second
Report of the International Panel on Fissile Materials, Program on Science and Global Security, Princeton University, October 2007.
895 - NIW, “Briefs - Russia”, Nuclear Intelligence Weekly, 5 July 2019.
896 - WNN, “Russian floating reactor construction starts”, 17 April 2007, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/newsarticle.
aspx?id=13250, accessed 30 April 2017.
897 - Charles Digges, “New documents show cost of Russian floating nuclear power plant skyrockets”, Bellona, 25 May 2015,see http://bellona.org/news/nuclear-issues/2015-05-new-documents-show-cost-russian-nuclear-power-plant-skyrockets,
accessed 28 December 2015.
898 - Gary Peach, “Rosatom Pursues SMRs Across Multiple Platforms”, NIW, 17 May 2019.
899 - L. Andreeva-Andrievskaya, “Nuclear R&D Activities in Russia”, Rosatom, Presented at the Nuclear Innovation Roadmap(NI2050) Workshop of the Nuclear Energy Agency, July 2015, see https://www.oecd-nea.org/ndd/workshops/ni2050/presentations/docs/2_20_Russia_Nuclear%20R_D%20Activities%20in%20Russia_L_Andreeva_Andrievskaya,%20ROSATOM.pdf, accessed
29 July 2019.
900 - NEI, “Russia’s Brest reactor now scheduled for 2026”, 16 October 2018,see https://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsrussias-brest-reactor-now-scheduled-for-2026-6803677, accessed 29 July 2019.
901 - Government of the Russian Federation, “О внесении изменений в федеральную целевую программу ‘Ядерные
энерготехнологии нового поколения на период 2010-2015 годов и на перспективу до 2020 года’—Утратило силу с 1января 2019 года на основании постановления Правительства Российской Федерации от 30 ноября 2018 года N 1451”,
Resolution, 11 November 2017, see http://docs.cntd.ru/document/555631831, accessed 29 July 2019. Thanks to Anatoli Diakov for thisreference and information.
902 - WNA, “Nuclear Power in Russia”, July 2019, see https://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/country-profiles/countrieso-s/russia-nuclear-power.aspx, accessed 29 July 2019.
903 - NEI, “Russia seeks partners for its SVBR project”, 15 November 2016, see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsrussia-seekspartners-for-its-svbr-project-5669556, accessed 30 April 2017.

| 205

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

SOUTH KOREA
South Korea’s System-Integrated Modular Advanced Reactor (SMART), a 100 MW
Pressurized Water Reactor, has been under development by the Korea Atomic Energy ResearchInstitute (KAERI) since 1997 and is the first land‑based SMR of Light Water Reactor or LWR
design (not including the designs from the 1950s and 1960s) to be licensed for construction.
In July 2012, SMART received Standard Design Approval from Korea’s Nuclear Safety andSecurity Commission.904 But there are no plans to construct a SMART in South Korea, because
it is not cost‑competitive. As the World Nuclear Association pointed out: “KAERI planned tobuild a 90 MWe demonstration plant to operate from 2017, but this is not practical or economic
in South Korea”.905
KAERI has therefore been pursuing export orders. The main potential clients are Jordan
and Saudi Arabia. In 2015, KAERI signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with theKing Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (KA‑CARE), to “conduct a three-year
preliminary study to review the feasibility of constructing SMART reactors in Saudi Arabia”.906
Two years later, KA‑CARE and the Jordan Atomic Energy Commission signed an MoU thatcalled for conducting a feasibility study on the construction of two small modular reactors in
Jordan.907 The MoU did not specify any design but because it mentions both the production ofelectricity and desalinated water, the likely design that would be considered for the feasibility
study is the SMART reactor. According to some KA‑CARE officials, the company has joint
ownership of intellectual property rights with KAERI and Saudi engineers have been trainedin Korea.908 More generally, KA‑CARE has also advanced ambitious if unrealistic plans oflocalizing some of the reactor manufacture in Saudi Arabia.909

UNITED KINGDOMThe United Kingdom’s SMR interests date back at least to 2014, when the U.K. government
commissioned a feasibility study910 co-funded by seven nuclear industry organisations,
including Rolls‑Royce, and carried out by the National Nuclear Laboratory. The following year,
in November 2015, the government announced that “at least £250 million” (US$2015380 million)
will be spent by 2020 on an “ambitious” programme to “position the UK as a global leader in
904 - Kwon Dong-joon, “Korean All-in-one SMR Won World’s First Standard Design Approval”, etnews, 5 July 2012,see http://english.etnews.com/20120705200008, accessed 30 April 2017.
905 - WNA, “Nuclear Power in South Korea”, February 2017,see http://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/country-profiles/countries-o-s/south-korea.aspx, accessed 30 April 2017.
906 - WNN, “Saudi Arabia teams up with Korea on SMART”, 4 March 2015,see http://world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Saudi-Arabia-teams-up-with-Korea-on-SMART-0403154.html, accessed 30 August 2019.
907 - WNN, “Jordan and Saudi Arabia team up on uranium, SMRs”, 29 March 2017,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Jordan-and-Saudi-Arabia-team-up-on-uranium,-SMRs, accessed 24 June 2019.
908 - Rashad Abuaish, “Saudi National Atomic Energy Project”, K.A.CARE, Presented at the Small Modular Reactor Safety andLicensing IAEA Workshop, 12–15 December 2017, 12 December 2017, see https://gnssn.iaea.org/NSNI/SMRP/SitePages/Home.aspx,
accessed 28 June 2019.
909 - Ali Ahmad, Reem Salameh and M. V. Ramana, “Localizing Nuclear Capacity? Small Modular Reactors and Saudi Arabia”, Issam
Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs, American University of Beirut, July 2019, see www.aub.edu.lb/ifi, accessed
30 August 2019.
910 - WNN, “National Nuclear Laboratory urges UK investment in SMRs”, 4 December 2014, see https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/
NN-National-Nuclear-Laboratory-urges-UK-investment-in-SMRs-4121401.html, accessed 6 July 2019.

| 206

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

innovative nuclear technologies” and that there would “be a competition” to identify the best
SMR and aim to build “one of the world’s first SMRs in the U.K. in the 2020s”.911
The only U.K. company to come up with a new reactor design is Rolls‑Royce. At 450 MW, thepower output of the Rolls‑Royce design cannot be considered small by definition, but thecompany insists on terming it the “U.K. SMR”.912 In a September 2017 report, Rolls‑Roycetermed its development a “national endeavour” and “a once in a lifetime opportunity for UK
nuclear companies to design, manufacture, build and operate next generation reactors to meet
our energy challenge” and promised “to invest in this programme, if matched by Government
support”.913
Although the government was willing to fund the SMR program, the level of funding and othercommitments that Rolls‑Royce demanded was clearly too high. In January 2019, it was reported
that Rolls‑Royce wanted—and would match—more than £200 million (US$250 million) fromthe U.K. Government to develop the design to the point where it could receive approval fromthe U.K. safety regulator.914
The U.K. Government, though, seems to be walking away from such support. In December 2017,it released a report that, as The Times stated, “found that the first SMR was likely to be more
expensive, with lifetime electricity costs of about £101 [US$127] per megawatt‑hour. It said thiswas much higher than estimates submitted by leading small nuclear developers, which werelikely to be subject to ‘overly optimistic’ outlooks”.915 And in June 2018, the Business and Energy
Secretary told the U.K. Parliament when discussing the proposed Wylfa Newydd nuclear power
plant that “no technology will be pursued at any price: new nuclear must provide value formoney for consumers and taxpayers”.916 Should that requirement be implemented fully, there
might be no case for Rolls‑Royce’s SMR plans.

UNITED STATESThe U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has been an important and persistent advocate
for SMRs. Over the past decade alone, it has invested hundreds of millions of dollars into
promoting research and development work on SMRs. The most substantial DOE investment
was in the form of a “cost-shared partnership” to provide support “first-of-a-kind engineering,
design certification and licensing” that chose two SMR designs, the mPower design in 2012 andthe NuScale design in 2013, for awards of up to US$226 million each.
911 - Damian Carrington, “George Osborne puts UK at the heart of global race for mini-nuclear reactors”, The Guardian,
24 November 2015, see https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/nov/24/mini-nuclear-reactors-answer-to-climate-change-crisis,
accessed 6 July 2019.
912 - Rolls-Royce, “UK Small Modular Reactors: A National Endeavour”, September 2017,see https://www.uknuclearsmr.org/uk-smr-a-national-endeavour-report/, accessed 6 July 2019.
913 - Ibidem., p.4.
914 - Sylvia Pfeifer, David Sheppard, “Rolls-Royce leads drive for small nuclear sites: Energy”, Financial Times, 28 January 2019.
915 - Emily Gosden, “Double setback casts big shadow over mini reactors”, The Times, 8 December 2017.
916 - Greg Clark, “Statement to Parliament on Horizon project at Wylfa Newydd”, Business and Energy Secretary, Department for
Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, Oral Statement to Parliament, 4 June 2018, see https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/statement-to-parliament-on-horizon-project-at-wylfa-newydd, accessed 6 July 2019. In July 2019, it was reported that the UK
Government would commit GBP18.0 million (USD22.4 million) of initial funds to support the development of the Rolls Royce projectas part of the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, subject to final confirmation in the early autumn.

| 207

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

The mPower design was proposed by Babcock & Wilcox (B&W) and was promoted by thecompany as “creating the future of nuclear power” and was targeting to obtain “Design
Certification” from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in 2017 according to an official
presentation as late as December 2012.917 By 2014, B&W had slashed its spending on the SMR
project from about US$80 million/year to less than US$15 million/year.918 What happened?
B&W had not found any companies willing to invest in mPower nor customers willing toenter into a contract for the reactor.919 Despite a further attempt at resuscitation, mPower isessentially dead.
The other beneficiary of DOE funding, NuScale, has continued with the developmentof its reactor design. It has submitted its design for review by the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) and in March 2017, the NRC accepted NuScale’s application for full review
and has commenced the design certification process that, according to officials, is “expected
to take 40 months”.920 The following year, in April 2018, NRC completed its first phase of
the review, but the next stages are expected to take longer. The same month DOE provided
another grant of US$40 million to NuScale.921 As of 2019, NuScale had reportedly invested
approximately US$850 million into SMR development, with the majority of it coming from the
Fluor Corp., and a little more than a third coming from the federal government.922
NuScale is trying to sell its reactor design to Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems(UAMPS), which is “a political subdivision of the State of Utah that provides comprehensive
wholesale electric-energy, transmission, and other energy services, on a nonprofit basis, tocommunity-owned power systems… [in] Utah, California, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico andWyoming”.923 However, many members of UAMPS have still not agreed to this project andthere are not enough subscribers to absorb all the electrical output of a NuScale power plantconsisting of 12 units with gross outputs of 60 MW each. As of March 2019, there was notenough commitment for even 150 MW, the trigger for the project moving to the next phase.924
Once again, the DOE has tried to rescue NuScale by expressing the “intent to use the output
from the first two modules, one for research and development, and the other to supply power”
to the DOE’s Idaho National Laboratory. The DOE had earlier agreed to have the reactors sited
within the Idaho National Laboratory.925
917 - John Ferrara, “B&W mPower Small Modular Reactor: Creating the future of nuclear power”, presented at the Energy Facility
Contractors Group Executive Council Semi-Annual Meeting, Energy Facility Contractors Group Executive Council Semi-Annual
Meeting, 5 December 2012, see http://www.efcog.org/library/council_meeting/12SAECMtg/2012SAMindex.htm.
918 - WNN, “Funding for mPower Reduced”, 14 April 2014, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/C-Funding-for-mPowerreduced-1404141.html, accessed 24 May 2015.
919 - Jason Ruiter, “Babcock & Wilcox Cuts Investment in mPower”, NewsAdvance.com, 14 April 2014, see http://www.newsadvance.
com/news/local/babcock-wilcox-cuts-investment-in-mpower/article_d7998d52-c3d3-11e3-8fbb-0017a43b2370.html, accessed
25 May 2015.
920 - NEI, “NuScale SMR Design Ready for Full Review, NRC Says”, 16 March 2017, see https://www.nei.org/News-Media/News/NewsArchives/NuScale-SMR-Design-Ready-for-Full-Review,-NRC-Says, accessed 29 April 2017.
921 - Pete Danko, “Oregon’s small-nuke company wins US$40M federal grant”, Portland Business Journal, 27 April 2018, see https://www.bizjournals.com/portland/news/2018/04/27/oregon-small-nuke-company-nuscale-wins-40m-federal.html, accessed 28 June 2019.
922 - Emily Green, “Could nuclear power return to Oregon?”, Street Roots News, 7 June 2019,see https://news.streetroots.org/2019/06/07/could-nuclear-power-return-oregon, accessed 13 June 2019.
923 - UAMPS, “About UAMPS”, Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems, 29 April 2017, see http://www.uamps.com/, accessed
29 April 2017.
924 - Stephanie Cooke, “NuScale Prepares for SMR Development Phase”, NIW, 29 March 2019.
925 - Modern Power Systems, “Preferred site identified for first NuScale SMR plant”, 31 October 2016, see http://www.
modernpowersystems.com/features/featurepreferred-site-identified-for-first-nuscale-smr-plant-5653358/, accessed 29 April 2017.

| 208

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

NuScale’s estimated total cost is currently US$4.2 billion, although that is likely to increase.926
More relevant to potential purchasers of the NuScale design, it claims that the levelized cost ofenergy from the UAMPS project would be around US$65/MWh, much lower than other nuclear
projects. The secret to this bold prediction is that being a municipal utility, UAMPS has accessto low‑interest financing. Unlike market projects that typically use a weighted average cost ofcapital of 8–9 percent, UAMPS can access debt at interest rates around 4 percent or lower. As a
NuScale official told Nuclear Intelligence Weekly (NIW) “The financing UAMPS has available toit clearly makes a difference”.927
Other financial advantages that NuScale is hoping for are future federal production tax credits,
the current DOE cost-sharing, an anticipated DOE loan guarantee, plus limits Idaho provides
on property taxes at INL.928 Even after all these advantages, there are many other alternatives
at lower cost.929

CONCLUSION ON SMRs
Although policymakers in many countries continue to be interested in SMRs, it has become
evident that they will be even less capable of competing economically than large nuclear plants,
which have themselves been increasingly uncompetitive. Thus, even if a few SMR projects get
built over the next decade or beyond, typically as a result of massive support from one or moregovernments, it is unlikely that SMRs could play any significant role in the future electricity
sector.

926 - Wendy Wilson, “Tough Economics for UAMPS Small Modular Reactors”, Snake River Alliance, 11 April 2018,see http://snakeriveralliance.org/tough-economics-for-uamps-small-modular-reactors/, accessed 16 May 2019.
927 - Stephanie Cooke, “NuScale Prepares for SMR Development Phase”, NIW, 29 March 2019.
928 - Ibidem.
929 - Energy Strategies, “Analyzing the Cost of Small Modular Nuclear Reactors and Alternate Power Portfolios”, Prepared for Healthy
Environment Alliance of Utah, May 2019, see https://www.healutah.org/smnr/, accessed 28 June 2019.

| 209

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 210

NUCLEAR POWER VS.
RENEWABLE ENERGYDEPLOYMENTINTRODUCTION
The next 18 months will be a crucial period for the development of a more ambitious international
climate regime. In September 2019, the United Nations is hosting the Climate Action Summit,
to galvanize support for more determined action, including through the revision of thecountry‑specific carbon abatement plans or Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)
required under the Paris Agreement. As was analyzed in WNISR2016, within the INDCs—atthe time the pledges were only Indicative Nationally Determined Contributions—just elevencountries mentioned they were operating or considering to operate nuclear power as part oftheir mitigation strategy and even fewer (five) actually stated that they were proposing to
expand its use (Belarus, India, Japan, Turkey and United Arab Emirates). This compares with
144 that mention the use of renewable energy, and 111 that explicitly mention targets or plansfor expanding its use. It is therefore highly unlikely that the revision of the carbon abatement
plans will lead to stronger statements of support for nuclear power because, as is outlined inthis chapter, it is renewable energy technologies that are the preferred non-fossil fuel option.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the United Nations bodyestablished for assessing the science related to climate change. Periodically, the IPCC publishes
Assessment Reports that review developments and changing understanding in both climate
adaptation and mitigation. The most recent, the 5th report (AR5), was published in 2015; thenext will be in 2022. In addition, the IPCC undertakes special reports, such as on Renewable
Energy Sources in 2011. The 2015 Paris Agreement states that its “central aim is to strengthen
the global response to the threat of climate change by keeping a global temperature rise thiscentury well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts tolimit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius”; consequently, the IPCC
undertook a 2018 special report on the impacts of 1.5 degrees of global warming.
In the chapter on mitigation, the IPCC review the role of different energy technologies and areclear that in order to have a high degree of confidence in meeting a 1.5 degree target, the shareof primary energy from renewables (including bioenergy, hydro, wind, and solar) needs toincrease by 2050, so that they supply 52–67 percent of primary energy. Solar and wind together
are expected to provide 28–343 EJ930 (with a median of 121 EJ) by 2050, while the role fornuclear power is much less certain, with the suggestion that by 2050 primary energy supplied
by nuclear would range from 3 to 66 EJ/year (median of 24 EJ).931 Furthermore, the IPCC statesthat “some 1.5°C pathways with no or limited overshoot no longer see a role for nuclear fission

930 - EJ = exajoule = 1018 joules = 23.884 MTOE = 277.8 TWh
931 - IPCC et al., “Global Warming of 1.5 oC—Chapter 2: Mitigation Pathways Compatible with 1.5°C in the Context of Sustainable
Development”, Special Report, 2018, see https://www.ipcc.ch/sr15/, accessed 23 June 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 211

by the end of the century”.932 While there is no agreement on the extent, if any, of the role
nuclear power will have in the future, even in a rapidly decarbonizing world, what is clear isthat renewable energy will now dominate a future energy system and as its deployment rates
accelerate its advantages over nuclear will become more obvious. Furthermore, there is every
indication, as outlined below, that nuclear power will be at best a marginal contributor in a
selective set of countries and markets, and most likely will continue to fade for basic economic
reasons.

INVESTMENT
Investment decisions are not only an important indicator of the future power mix, but theyalso highlight the confidence that the technology‑neutral financial sector has in different
power generation options. Consequently, they can be seen as an important barometer of thecurrent state of policy certainty and costs of technologies on the global and regional levels.
Figure 38 | Global Investment Decisions in Renewables and Nuclear Power 2004­–2018

Global Investment Decisions in
New Renewables and Nuclear Power300© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

in US$ billion, 2004-2018

250

200

150

Other Renewables

100

Solar
Wind

50

Nuclear2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 20180

Sources: FS-UNEP/BNEF, 2018 and REN21, 2019 and WNISR Original Research

Figure 38 compares the annual investment decisions for the construction of new nuclear plants
with those for renewable energy since 2004. Construction began on five nuclear reactors in
2018, in Bangladesh, Russia, South Korea, Turkey and the U.K., compared to four new reactors
in 2017, three in 2016 and eight in 2015. The total reported investment for the construction of
the 2018 projects is around US$33 billion for 6.2 GW. (That is considerably higher per MW thanthe US$16 billion for 4.25 GW in 2017, due to the declared 2018-start of construction of Unit 1
at Hinkley Point C in the U.K.) However, this is still less than a quarter of the investment inwind or solar, with over US$134 billion and US$139 billion of 2018 investment, respectively.

932 - Jeff McMahon, “New Solar + Battery Price Crushes Fossil Fuels, Buries Nuclear”, Forbes,
see https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffmcmahon/2019/07/01/new-solar--battery-price-crushes-fossil-fuels-buries-nuclear/,accessed 2 July 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 212

In the absence of comprehensive, publicly available investment estimates for nuclear powerby year, and in order to simplify the approach, WNISR includes the total projected investment
costs in the year in which construction was started, rather than spreading them out over theentire construction period. Furthermore, the nuclear investment figures do not include revised
budgets if cost overruns occur. The WNISR nuclear investment assessment in 2018 is similar
to that proposed by the Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN21)933 ,which suggests US$33 billion in new investment (although the methodology is unclear). REN21
concludes that new renewable energy investment in 2018, excluding large-scale hydro, made up
65 percent of all new electricity generating capacity and totaled US$273 billion.934
Globally, the relative importance of Europe and North America for renewable energy
investments is diminishing, with the rise of Asia, especially China, India and Japan(see Figure 39). Chinese nominal-dollar renewable investment rose from US$26 billion in2008 to US$146 billion in 2017 before a steep cut to US$91 billion in 2018. Total cumulated
investment in nuclear in China over the same period was about US$82 billion.
Figure 39 | Regional Breakdown of Nuclear and Renewable Energy Investment Decisions 2008–2018

Regional Breakdown of Nuclear and Renewable Energy Investments
in US$ Billion, 2004-2018

300

250
Renewable
NuclearAsia (excluding
China and India)

200

China
Middle East
and Africa

100

EuropeAmericas (excluding
US and Brazil)

50

Brazil
US

0

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

India

150

Sources: REN21, 2019, WNISR Original Analysis

933 - International policy network dedicated to the development of renewable energies that publishes the annual Global Status Reporton renewables.
934 - REN21, “Renewables 2019 – Global Status Report”, June 2019, see https://www.ren21.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/gsr_2019_
full_report_en.pdf, accessed 30 August 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 213

TECHNOLOGY COSTS
Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) analysis for the U.S. undertaken by Lazard at the end of
2018 (see Figure 40) suggests that the cost of solar photovoltaics (PV, thin film) ranges from
US$36 to US$44/MWh, compared to US$43–48/MWh in 2017; onshore wind is US$29–56/
MWh (US$30–60/MWh in 2017); and nuclear is US$112–189 (US$112–143/MWh in 2017). This
continues an existing trend of rapidly falling costs of renewables, vs. static or rising costs ofnuclear. The costs of renewable electricity are now also below those of coal (US$60–143/MWh)and combined-cycle gas (US$41–74/MWh). Between 2009 and 2018, utility-scale solar costs
came down 88 percent and wind 69 percent, while nuclear increased by 23 percent, according
to Lazard.935 Other authoritative market-based analyses, notably the subscriber database of
Bloomberg New Energy Finance, give similar results.
Figure 40 | The Declining Costs of Renewables vs. Traditional Power Sources

Selected Historical Mean Costs by Technology
LCOE values in US$/MWh (¹)
350300

Nuclear: 123–151

250

Gas - Combined Cycle: 83–58

Notes

Coal: 111–102
Solar PV-Crystalline: 359–43

200

Wind: 135–42

150

+23%

100

–9%

50
0

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

–30%
–88%
–69%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
3.0
4.0
5.0
6.0
7.0
8.0
9.0 10.0 11.0 12.0
Lazard LCOE Versions(1) Reflects the average of the high and low
LCOE for each respective technology in each
respective year. Percentages represent the
total decrease in the average LCOE sinceLazard’s LCOE—Version 3.0.
LCOE = Levelized Cost of Energy Reflects
average of unsubsidized high and low
LCOE range for given version of LCOE
study. Primarily relates to North American
alternative energy landscape but reflects
broader/global cost declines.

Source: Lazard Estimates, 2018936

According to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), both the installation andthe power production costs of solar and wind have fallen significantly over the past decade.
Utility-scale photovoltaics (PV) plants’ construction costs have fallen by 74 percent between
2010 and 2018, from a US$3,300–7,900/kW range in 2010 to US$800–2,700/kW in 2018, whileplants commissioned in 2018 had a global weighted-average LCOE of US$0.085/kWh, which
was around 13 percent lower than the equivalent for 2017. For onshore wind the global weighted
average installed costs fell between 2010 and 2018, from US$1,913/kW to US$1,497/kW, while
new capacity was commissioned at a global weighted average LCOE of US$0.056/kWh, which
was also 13 percent lower than the value for 2017.937 As a consequence, onshore wind and solar

935 - Lazard, “Lazard’s Levelized Cost of Energy Analysis—Version 12.0”, November 2018,see https://www.lazard.com/media/450784/lazards-levelized-cost-of-energy-version-120-vfinal.pdf, accessed 30 August 2019.
936 - Ibidem.
937 - IRENA, “Renewable Power Generation Costs in 2018”, International Renewable Energy Agency, May 2019,see https://www.irena.org/-/media/Files/IRENA/Agency/Publication/2019/May/IRENA_2018_Power_Costs_2019.pdf?la=en&hash=1C75
53C3BFD997DEA36D07149D60005258C9C8A8, accessed 29 May 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

PV power are now often less expensive than any fossil-fueled option, without subsidy or otherfinancial assistance.
Furthermore, new solar and wind installations increasingly undercut even the operating-only
costs of existing coal-fired plants. Forbes recently reported under the headline “New Solar +Battery Price Crushes Fossil Fuels, Buries Nuclear” that, within weeks, the LA Board of Water
and Power Commission was expected to approve “a 25-year contract that will serve 7 percent of
the city’s electricity demand at 1.997¢/kWh for solar energy and 1.3¢ for power from batteries”.
That means a price guarantee of less than US$20/MWh for solar and US$13 for storage, whichmatches the average operation and maintenance (O&M) costs of operating nuclear plants in
the U.S., that is, undercuts the O&M costs of many operating plants. As Forbes comments,
these prices “leave fossil fuels in the dust and may relegate nuclear power to the dustbin”.938
The declining costs of renewables globally contrast with nuclear costs that are at best constantand more often, when numbers are available, are rising, often significantly. As a consequence,
it is now widely recognized that the costs of renewables are now significantly below thoseof either nuclear power or gas. The International Energy Agency (IEA) stated, in its recent
assessment of nuclear power, that:
Today, the high capital cost of nuclear makes it significantly more costly on a levelized costs
basis than wind power or gas fired generation in both the European Union and United States.
By 2040, in the United States, the LCOE for nuclear power is projected to be around USD100
per MWh, double that of solar PV and wind. In the European Union, the gap is smaller as
nuclear’s LCOE averages around USD110 per MWh compared to wind and solar PV in [a]range of USD 85–90 per MWh.939

Given the anticipated operational lifetimes of modern reactors, their relative economic
performance will only deteriorate compared to the next generations of renewables, locking
utilities into operating uneconomic assets.

INSTALLED CAPACITY AND
ELECTRICITY GENERATION
While there has been a slowdown in the rate of increase of investment in renewables, thisreflects changes in policies in some countries and regions, and importantly, a rapid reduction
in investment costs per MW, so renewables’ net installed capacity increases (and often
accelerates) despite lower total investment. In total, 165 GW of new renewable generating
capacity (excluding hydro) was installed in 2018 according to REN21,940 compared with 157 GW
in 2017.

938 - Jeff McMahon, “New Solar + Battery Price Crushes Fossil Fuels, Buries Nuclear”, Forbes, see https://www.forbes.com/sites/
jeffmcmahon/2019/07/01/new-solar--battery-price-crushes-fossil-fuels-buries-nuclear/, accessed 2 July 2019.
939 - IEA, “Nuclear Power in a Clean Energy System”, International Energy Agency, May 2019,see https://webstore.iea.org/download/direct/2779?fileName=Nuclear_Power_in_a_Clean_Energy_System.pdf, accessed 23 June 2019.
940 - REN21, “Renewable 2019—Global Status Report”, June 2019.

| 214

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 215

Figure 41 | Variation of Wind, Solar and Nuclear Capacity and Electricity Production in the World

Wind, Solar and Nuclear Developments: Installed Capacity and Electricity Productionin the World

399

392

332
298

283
250

178

133

140

Nuclear

101

74

Solar

226

203

41

487

450

Wind

14

0

498

in GWe net

22

14

6
-23

32

41
15

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

547

Capacity Added Since 2000

Annual Production
Compared to 1997

Wind 1 258

in TWh/year

1 116
945
819
633

Nuclear
180

241
51

0

397

289

294

366

584

453
425

328

299

139

121
5

Solar

20

64

Nuclear(excl. LTO)

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 20181998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018

Sources: WNISR, IAEA-PRIS, BP Statistical Review, 2019

The net capacity additions of wind power slowed down for the third year with 49.2 GW of new
capacity compared to 52 GW in 2017, 55 GW in 2016 and 64 GW in 2015. Solar PV remained
almost stable with 96 GW of added capacity, down from 97 GW installed in 2017, up from75 GW in 2016 and 51 GW in 2015. As China has been the main driver of increased deploymentof solar, a decline in China (by around 10 GW), due largely to 2018 policy shifts, has had global
impacts.
Figure 41 illustrates how quickly the extent to which renewables have been deployed at scale
since the start of the millennium, with capacity increasing by 547 GW for wind and of 487 GW
for solar, compared to the relative stagnation of nuclear power capacity, which meanwhile roseby around 41 GW, including all reactors currently in Long-Term Outage (LTO). Consideringthat almost 26 GW of nuclear power were in LTO at the end of 2018, and thus not operating,the nuclear balance is an addition of 15 GW since 2000, or less than 1/40th of the increase inwind and solar capacity alone.
Of course, the characteristics of electricity generating technologies vary due to different loadfactors. In general, over the year, operating nuclear power plants produce more electricity per
MW of installed capacity than renewables. However, as can be seen in Figure 41, since 1997,
an additional 1,259 TWh of wind power was generated in 2018 and 584 TWh from solar PV,
totaling six times the additional 299 TWh of generation by nuclear energy. In 2018, annual
growth rates for the generation from wind power were 12.6 percent (compared to 17.8 percent
in 2017) globally, 28.9 percent (38 percent in 2017) for solar PV, and 2.4 percent (1 percent in2017) for nuclear power.
The growth of renewable electricity—mainly but not exclusively from wind and solar power—
is now not only outcompeting nuclear power but is rapidly overtaking fossil fuels, and is theWo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 216

source of choice for new generation. Figure 42 below shows the extent to which, over the last
decade, different energy sources have increased their electricity production. The energy sourcethat has provided the greatest amount of additional electricity over the last decade is nonhydro renewables, generating an additional 1,932 TWh of power. The sector with the second
largest growth was coal, followed by gas and hydro, with nuclear power and oil’s net production
both below their respective 2008 levels.
Figure 42 | Net Added Electricity Generation by Power Source 2008–2018

Power Generation in the World
Annual Production Compared to 2008
in added TWh by Source
2000

1 932
1 823
1 750

Non-hydro renewables
Hydro
Coal

1500

Gas
Oil
Nuclear

1000

937

500

0

-36
-255

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

2008

2010

2012

2014

2016

2018

Source: BP Statistical Review, 2019Note

A clerical error distorted this graph and its interpretation in WNISR2018. Solar and wind were mistakenly included twice in the “Non-hydro renewables”
category. Our apologies.

The stagnation of nuclear power development allowed wind and solar to outpace nuclear energy
in total installed generating capacity. And while in 2018 nuclear still generated more electricity(2,563 TWh), wind (1,270 TWh) and solar (585 TWh) are catching up fast and together
represent almost three quarters of nuclear power production. By 2018, other sources excluding
big hydro—biomass-fueled generators, geothermal, small hydro, etc.—had brought modern
renewables’ generating total beyond nuclear power’s. In addition, data from the Organisation
for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) International Energy Agency and
REN21 show that modern renewable sources of direct heat (biomass, solar, and geothermal)
now approximate global production of wind-plus-solar electricity941, but are missing from BP’s
“Statistical Review” (the basis for Figure 42).

941 - A.B. Lovins et al., “Recalibrating Climate Prospects,” 2019, in peer review as of August 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 217

Figure 43 | Wind, Solar and Nuclear Capacity and Electricity Production in the World

Wind, Solar and Nuclear Installed Capacity and Electricity Production in the World
CapacityWind© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

468

363

371

368

Nuclear (excl. LTO)

391

360

365

327
220

298

227

181
178
115

Solar
102

47

Electricity Productionin TWh/year
2 553

488

417

Nuclear
350

564

23

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018

2 444

2 661

2 630

2 563

Nuclear

2 505
2 346

2 264

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

in GWeWind 1 270
957
712
342
221
63

133
8

34

585

524

101

198

328

Solar

1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018

Sources: WNISR, IAEA-PRIS, BP Statistical Review, 2019STATUS AND TRENDS IN CHINA, THE EU,
INDIA, AND THE UNITED STATES
China
China remains a dominant force in the global renewable business and has once again topped
the Ernst & Young Country Attractiveness Index in 2018 for renewable investments.942 Growthin electricity generation picked up in 2018, following a slowdown in recent years, although it
is still high compared to the global average. In 2018, the increase was 7.7 percent, above thedecadal average of 7.2 percent.
The solar sector had a record year in 2017 with the deployment of 53 GW. However, reductions
in financial support from central government led to a slowdown of deployment with anadditional 44.3 GW of installed capacity in 2018. As of the end of the year, China had a total
installed solar capacity of 175 GW according to BP.
On the other hand, in 2018, the annual deployment of wind capacity increased by 17.3 percent
or 23 GW, including 21.2 GW onshore and 1.8 GW offshore. Wind power capacity in China now
totals 206 GW, according to the Global Wind Energy Council943 , but BP “Statistical Review”(WNISR’s reference) using IRENA’s data suggests the total is 184 GW. According to the
National Energy Administration, by the end of 2018 China’s renewable energy power generation
capacity reached 728 GW, a year‑on‑year increase of 12 percent; of which hydropower installed
942 - EY, “Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Index – Issue 52”, 18 November 2018,see https://www.ey.com/uk/en/industries/power---utilities/ey-renewable-energy-country-attractiveness-index, accessed 14 May 2019.
943 - GWEC, “Global Wind Energy Report 2018”, April 2019, see https://gwec.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/GWEC-Global-WindReport-2018.pdf, accessed 23 June 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 218

capacity was 352 GW, wind 184 GW, solar PV 174 GW, biomass power 17.81 GW, with respective
year-on-year growth rates of 2.5 percent, 12.4 percent, 34 percent and 20.7 percent. Renewableenergy power generation accounted for 38.3 percent of all China’s installed generating capacity.
In contrast, nuclear power increased its capacity by about 8 GW, with the completion of sevenreactors, up from three the previous year (see Figure 44). The new reactors started up in
China in 2018 represent over three quarters of global grid connections, with only two otherreactors starting up, both in Russia.
In 2018, renewable energy generation in China reached 1,870 TWh, an increase of about
170 TWh over the previous year; renewable energy, including hydropower, accounted for26.7 percent of total power generation. Hydropower produced 1,200 TWh; wind power
366 TWh; solar PV 177.5 TWh (a year-on-year increase of 50 percent, and a multiplication by afactor of 21 since 2013); biomass power generation 90.6 TWh.944 China produced 277 TWh of
nuclear electricity in 2018 (see Figure 44).
Figure 44 | Installed Wind, Solar and Nuclear Capacity and Electricity Production in China 2000–2018

Wind

Capacity165

in GWe

175

149
131

131

97
77

78

62

Solar

46
30
2

185

Nuclear 6

8

28

13
7

44

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Installed Wind, Solar and Nuclear Capacity and Production in China 2000-2018

43

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018

Windin TWh/year295

198 178

186

161

141
124

96
66

50
16

277

237

Nuclear

31
19

366

Production

44
45
4

24
4

118

62

Solar

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018

Sources: BP, IAEA-PRIS, WNISR 2019

Large-scale production and greater operating experience continues to drive down the costsof renewable energy. An assessment by Swiss bank UBS has suggested that a 500‑MW solar
farm was connected to the grid in northwest China’s Qinghai province, supplying electricity
at 0.316 yuan per kWh (US$4.5¢/kWh), cheaper than the 0.325 yuan per kWh (US$4.6¢/kWh)benchmark for coal.945 According to Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF), the cost of new

944 - National Energy Administration, “NEA Press conference: 2018 operational statistics of grid-connected renewable power
generation”, China Energy Portal, 28 January 2019, see https://chinaenergyportal.org/nea-press-conference-2018-operationalstatistics-of-grid-connected-renewable-power-generation/, accessed 14 May 2019.
945 - David Kirton and Caixin, “China Is Wasting Less Solar and Wind Power”, Sixth Tone, 2 May 2019,see https://www.sixthtone.com/news/1003939/china-is-wasting-less-solar-and-wind-power, accessed 21 June 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 bulk and dispatchable electricity in China is now for nuclear US$68-81/MWh, for coal US$54–
74/MWh, onshore wind US$49–72/MWh and PV US$44–84/MWh.946
China “is now the world’s largest producer, exporter and installer of solar panels, windturbines, batteries and electric vehicles” with “over 150,000 renewable energy patents as of2016, 29 percent of the global total”. The next closest country in the patent category is the U.S.
with a little over 100,000 patents, with Japan and the EU nearer to 75,000 patents each.947
A particular focus area in China appears to be storage technology. In June 2019, the WorldBank approved a US$300 million loan for the China Renewable Energy and Battery Storage
Promotion Project, with the aim of reducing “curtailment of renewable energy” andencouraging “further investments into changing China’s energy mix”.948 Another majorarea of focus is offshore wind. Currently the installed capacity of offshore wind in China
is only 4.6 GW.949 However, this is dwarfed by the roughly 55 GW of offshore wind projects
that would be soon under “construction or in the pipeline, representing more than 1 trillion
yuan (US$145 billion) at stake”.950 Because these projects are all, naturally, adjacent to coastal
provinces in Eastern China, where all existing and currently planned nuclear reactor projects
are, these pose “a threat” to the potential growth of nuclear power in China.951
The 13th Five Year Plan (2016–2020) proposes new targets for energy efficiency and the reductionof carbon intensity as well as diversification away from fossil fuels, whereby non-fossil fuels are
to provide 15 percent of primary energy consumption by 2020, up from 7.4 percent in 2005.952
However, in 2016, a total of 34.5 GW of solar PV were installed, almost double the forecasted 15 to
20 GW per year indicated by the National Energy Administration (NEA).953 In November 2016,
NEA announced an update of the 13th Five Year Plan for the power sector (2016–2020). The
target for wind power (210 GW) is higher than the previous announcement (200 GW), while thetarget for solar (110 GW) is considerably lower than previous announcements (up to 150 GW).
Given the deployment levels at the end of 2018 of 184 GW of wind and 174 GW of solar, thesetargets are now easy to meet in wind and have already been exceeded in solar. Consequently,
there are calls for the targets to be increased again. Liu Hanyuan, who is chairman of one ofChina’s largest solar firms, the TonWei Group and a member of the National People’s Congress,

946 - Becky Beetz, “Solar, wind cheapest source of new generation in major economies”, PV Magazine, 19 November 2018, see https://www.pv-magazine.com/2018/11/19/solar-wind-cheapest-source-of-new-generation-in-major-economies-report/, accessed 29 June 2019.
947 - Dominic Dudley, “China Is Set To Become The World’s Renewable Energy Superpower, According To New Report”, Forbes,
11 January 2019, see https://www.forbes.com/sites/dominicdudley/2019/01/11/china-renewable-energy-superpower/, accessed
15 June 2019.
948 - Modern Diplomacy, “World Bank to Help China Develop Renewable Energy with Battery Storage”, 13 June 2019, see https://
moderndiplomacy.eu/2019/06/13/world-bank-to-help-china-develop-renewable-energy-with-battery-storage/, accessed 15 June 2019.
949 - IRENA, “Renewable Capacity Statistics 2019”, May 2019, op. cit.
950 - C. F. Yu, “Offshore Wind Poses Threat to Nuclear”, NIW, 14 June 2019.
951 - Ibidem.
952 - China Dialogue, “Climate, energy and China’s 13th Five-Year Plan in graphics”, 18 March 2017, see https://www.chinadialogue.net/
article/show/single/en/8734-Climate-energy-and-China-s-13th-Five-Year-Plan-%20in-graphics, accessed 22 June 2017.
953 - Richard Martin, “China is on an epic solar power binge”, MIT Technology Review, 22 March 2016,see https://www.technologyreview.com/s/601093/china-is-on-an-epic-solar-power-binge/, accessed 22 June 2017.

| 219

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 220

has called for the targets for the non-fossil fuel share of the energy mix to rise to 20 percent by
2020, then 30 percent by 2030 and over 50 percent by 2050.954
The 13 Five Year Plan is also proposing to increase nuclear capacities to a total of 58 GW by
2020. However, only 44.5 GW are operating as of 1 July 2019, with another 8.8 GW underconstruction. Therefore, it will be impossible to meet this target.
th

European Union
In the European Union, renewables are now providing nearly all new capacity, in 2018,95 percent coming from wind (10.1 GW or 49 percent), solar PV (8.0 GW or 39 percent) andbiomass (1.1 GW or 5 percent).955 (See Figure 45).
Figure 45 | Startup and Closure of Electricity Generating Capacity in the EU in 2018

Startup and Closure of Electricity
Generating Capacity in the EU in 2018

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

by Energy Source in GWe
Wind
10.1
PV
8.0
Other
Renewables

1.5

-0.4

NaturalGas
Nuclear
0.8
0
-0.5

0.2
-0.7
Fuel
Oil

-1.7
Coal

Sources: WindEurope, WNISR, 2019

Note
Other Renewables here include large hydro.

In 2018, Europe invested €27 billion (US$31 billion) in wind farms alone.956 Between 2000 and2018, the net changes in installed generating capacities highlight the shift towards renewables
and gas power plants, with respectively 168 GW, 115 GW and 97 GW of wind, solar and gas
power plants. On the other end, nuclear capacities decreased by 18.8 GW over the same period,
coal by 42.9 GW and fuel oil plants by 41.1 GW (see Figure 46).957 As of 2018, the installed solar
capacity had almost caught up with nuclear at 116 GW vs. 118 GW (see Figure 47).

954 - China Energy Portal, “Renewable energy goals nearly achieved—NPC representative suggests higher long-term targets: 20% by
2020, 30% by 2030”, 14 March 2019, see https://chinaenergyportal.org/renewable-energy-goals-nearly-achieved-npc-representativesuggests-higher-long-term-targets-20-by-2020-30-by-2030/, accessed 14 May 2019.
955 - WindEurope, “Wind energy in Europe in 2018”, 21 February 2019,see https://windeurope.org/about-wind/statistics/european/wind-energy-in-europe-in-2018/, accessed 14 May 2019.
956 - WindEurope, “Europe invests €27bn in new wind farms in 2018”, Press Release, 18 April 2019,see https://windeurope.org/newsroom/press-releases/europe-invests-27bn-in-new-wind-farms-in-2018/, accessed 25 May 2019.
957 - Ibidem.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 221

Figure 46 | Changes in Electricity Generating Capacity in the EU in 2000–2018

Changes in Installed Capacity in the EU 2000-2018
by Energy Source in GWe
Wind
168

PV
115

Natural
Gas
97

Other
Renewables
27.4

Nuclear-18.7
Fuel Oil Coal
-41.1 -42.7© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Sources: WindEurope, WNISR, 2018–19

Note
Other Renewables here include large hydro.

Figure 47 | Wind, Solar and Nuclear Capacity and Electricity Production in the EU (Absolute Numbers)Wind, Solar and Nuclear Installed Capacity and Electricity Production in the EU
Installed Capacity
in GWe177

925

Annual Production

960

in TWh/year

880

871
833

888

167

Nuclear

137

140

129

118

105

97

116

84
73

63

Solar

54
34
17

13

787

Nuclear5

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Wind

Wind 379
303
238
180
82
22

120
71
23

97

111

128

Solar

1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018

Sources: BP, IAEA-PRIS, WNISR 2019

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

In 2018, in the EU renewables provided 32.3 percent of the electricity production (wind was
11.8 percent958, 3.9 percent from solar PV, biomass 6.1 percent and hydro 10.6 percent).959 The
nuclear share for 2018 is not available from the same sources, but BP indicates a share in grosspower production of 25 percent.960
Production of renewable electricity exceeded 1,000 TWh for the first time (1,051 TWh) up from679 TWh in 2010. Other highlights in terms of renewable generation in Europe in 2018 include:ɆɆ Since 2000, wind added 164 GW, solar 116 GW, while nuclear declined by 19 GW. Since thesignature of the Kyoto Protocol in 1997, aawind and solar increased annual production
by 372 TWh and 128 TWh, while nuclear generated 94 TWh less power than two decades
earlier. (See Figure 48).
ɆɆ In 2018, wind supplied 11.6 percent of the EU’s power, led by Denmark at a remarkable
41 percent, Portugal and Ireland at 28 percent, and Germany at 21 percent and Spain andthe U.K. 19 percent (up from 13.5 percent in 2017).961 Wind generation rose by 6 percent,compared to 0.2 percent rise in power consumption in general. While solar generation roseby 7 percent (8 TWh).962
ɆɆ Solar provided around 4 percent of the EU’s electricity in 2018, but with significant
variations. In Italy and Germany, solar provided 8 percent or more, and in Greece,
7 percent.963
ɆɆ In Germany, in 2018, renewables provided almost 40 percent of the country’s electricity
consumption, up from 38 percent in 2017. This includes 20 percent coming from wind,
8.4 percent from solar and 8.2 percent from biomass. Nuclear provided 13.2 percent. Wind
has the largest installed capacity, with 53 GW onshore and 6.4 GW offshore and solar
46 GW.964
This growth in renewable electricity production is set to continue beyond the current 2020
targets, as in preparation of the UN climate meeting in Paris in December 2015, the EU initiallyagreed a binding target of at least 27 percent renewables in the primary energy mix by 2030,
which is likely to have meant 40–50 percent of power coming from renewables. However, inJune 2018, it was agreed to increase ambition, with a new target of 32 percent of renewables
in primary energy by 2030, with an opportunity to further increase this in 2023.965 By 2050,
the EU aims for a completely low-carbon electricity system. This will require speeding up thecurrent rate of renewable electricity deployment. There is no EU‑wide nuclear deployment
target and the nuclear share has been shrinking for decades.
958 - There is a slight difference from the Wind Europe figures quoted below.
959 - Dave Jones, Alice Sakhel, et al., “The European Power Sector in 2018 – Up-to-date analysis on the electricity transition”, Agora
Energiewende, Sandbag, January 2019, see https://sandbag.org.uk/project/power-2018/, accessed 14 May 2019.
960 - BP, “Statistical Review of World Energy–Workbook”, Statistics Work Book, June 2019, op. cit.
961 - WindEurope, “Wind Energy in Europe in 2018”, 18 April 2019. Op. cit.
962 - Dave Jones, Alice Sakhel, et al., “The European Power Sector in 2018—Up-to-Date Analysis on the Electricity Transition”,
January 2019.
963 - Ibidem.
964 - Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE, “Energy Charts—Electricity Generation”,
see https://www.energy-charts.de/energy_pie.htm?year=2018, accessed 14 May 2019.
965 - European Commission, “Europe leads the global clean energy transition: Commission welcomes ambitious agreement on further
renewable energy development in the EU”, 14 June 2018, see http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_STATEMENT-18-4155_en.htm,
accessed 18 June 2018.

| 222

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 223

Figure 48 | Wind, Solar and Nuclear Capacity and Electricity Production in the EU (Developments)

Capacity Added Since 2000

Wind

in GWe net

164

140

116

114
102

93
88

71

73

Solar

50
21

31

10

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Wind, Solar and Nuclear Developments: Installed Capacity and Electricity Production in the EU
Annual Production
Compared to 1997

-6

Nuclear-16-17

Nuclear -19(excl. LTO)

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018

372

296

in TWh/year

245

231

Solar
128

126
79

86

97
71

60

45
37

0

Wind

108

46
23

0
-32

-47
-42

Nuclear-94

1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018

Sources : BP, IAEA-PRIS, WNISR 2019

India
India has one of the oldest nuclear programs, starting electricity generation from fission in
1969. It is also one of the most troubled nuclear sectors in the world and has encountered many
setbacks (see India section). This is in stark contrast to India’s extremely rapid increase in theuse of renewable energy.
Figure 49 shows, how, since the turn of the century, the wind sector has grown rapidly, from
1.5 TWh to 60.3 TWh in 2018, and since 2016 has overtaken nuclear generation, which now
stands at 35 TWh. Solar is also growing rapidly, rising from 7 MWh in 2000 to 30 TWh in
the 2018 calendar year. In the fiscal year to March 2019, for the first time, solar energy fed
more electricity to the grid (39.3 TWh) than nuclear energy (37.7 TWh), while wind energy
contributed 62 TWh. The gap between renewables and nuclear will widen in the coming years,
as solar and wind grow while the nuclear sector stagnates.
According to BP, since 2010, India’s solar capacity has increased by a factor of 69 from 39.4 MW
to 27 GW at the end of 2018, while wind increased from 13 GW to 35 GW. These increases were
despite 2018 being criticized for bad government policies that slowed renewable growth. The
Government further states that it will reach its target of 175 GW of renewable energy capacity
well ahead of a 2022 deadline, as bids to build new capacity for the entire amount will becompleted by 2020.966
The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) reported that India had the world’s
lowest cost of installation for solar PV power plants in 2018. The agency compared installation
costs for 19 countries including heavyweights like China, United States, Japan, Italy, andGermany. The agency compared costs across multiple components like modules and inverters,
966 - The Hindu, “‘Will achieve 175 GW renewable energy target well before 2022’”, 6 June 2018, see http://www.thehindu.com/todayspaper/tp-business/will-achieve-175-gw-renewable-energy-target-well-before-2022/article24091514.ece, accessed 7 June 2018.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 224balance-of-system hardware, installation costs and soft costs. The total cost of installation
per kilowatt in India in 2018 was US$793 while the average cost of installation among the
19 countries was US$1,427/kW.967
The installation costs of wind power have fallen more in India than in any other country
studied by IRENA, having dropped by 66 percent between 1991 and 2018 and are now around
US$1,000/kW with an LCOE around US$0.06/kWh.968 It is notable that the auctions for bothsolar and wind power create maximum price disclosure, in contrast to the rather opaquenuclear sector. However, one independent analysis of proposed light water reactor (AP‑1000
and ESBWR) projects calculated levelized costs that ranged from US$0.13–0.38/kWh depending
on assumptions about the capital costs.969
Figure 49 | Wind, Solar and Nuclear Installed Capacity and Electricity Production in India

Wind

Capacityin GWe

35

29
25

27

23

Solar

18
16
13
10
6
4

3
2

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Installed Wind, Solar and Nuclear Capacity and Production in India 2000-2018

Nuclear4

6

5
1

in TWh/year

44

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018

35

33

31

29
30

Nuclear
15

14
3

4

Wind

53

18

10

60

Production

9

Solar

24
20
15

12
0.8

5

7

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018

Source : BP, IRENA, IAEA-PRIS, WNISR 2019

United States
In the United States, during his election campaign Donald Trump pledged to support the coaland nuclear sectors. Nevertheless, in 2018, the use of coal for electricity generation fell to its
lowest level since 1982—with coal plants retiring at twice the pace seen under the previous
Administration—and petroleum consumption in the power sector was the lowest on record.
The production of power from nuclear plants increased in 2018, to 808.3 TWh—slightly higher(+0.1 TWh) than the previous record in 2010—as a result of shorter outages and increased
capacity from the remaining units (see Figure 50).970
967 - IRENA, “Renewable Power Generation Costs in 2018”, May 2019.
968 - Ibidem.
969 - David A. Schlissel, “Bad Choice: The Risks, Costs and Viability of Proposed U.S. Nuclear Reactors in India”, Institute for Energy
Economics and Financial Analysis, March 2016.
970 - Michael Scott, Owen Comstock, “Despite closures, U.S. nuclear electricity generation in 2018 surpassed its previous peak”, Today
in Energy, U.S.EIA, 21 March 2019, see https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=38792, accessed 16 June 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 225

Across the power sector as a whole, in 2018, 31.3 GW of generating capacity were added and18.7 GW of capacity were retired. The 2018 annual capacity additions were the largest since
48.8 GW were added in 2003. The majority of the new capacity of 19.3 GW is fueled by gas,with an additional 6.6 GW of wind and 4.9 GW of utility-scale solar.971 The figures publishedby the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Energy Information Administration (EIA) for
deployment in 2018 are significantly lower than those released by other organizations.
BNEF‑BCSE estimate utility-scale solar additions in 2018 were 8.1 GW, and wind 7.5 GW.972
In 2019, it is expected that new wind power commissions will be around 12.7 GW, the second
highest annual deployment, due to projects rushing to be completed to meet changes to tax
incentives.973 In 2018, 12.9 GW of coal was retired, along with 4.7 GW of gas and 0.6 GW ofnuclear (Oyster Creek in New Jersey).974
Figure 50 | Increases in Electricity Production from Nuclear, Solar and Wind Since 2000 in the United States

Annual Production
Compared to 2000

Wind

in added TWh

Annual Production
2000-2018272

in net TWh

251
756

224

178

187

164
137
116

Solar 97

90

Nuclear
25

51

78

52
35

34
29
12

15

55
43

Nuclear
807

789

52

29

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018

808

807
771

764

© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Wind, Solar and Nuclear Developments in the United States 2000-2018

Wind

278

193
142

Solar 97

96
18

35

9

29

55

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018

Sources: BP, IAEA-PRIS, 2019

As solar and wind continue to be deployed at scale their installation costs continue to fall andtherefore so does the cost of electricity that they produce. As a consequence, the combined
fuel, maintenance, and other going-forward costs of coal-fired power from many existingcoal plants is now more expensive than the all-in costs of new wind or solar projects. Energy
Innovation and Vibrant Clean Energy (VCE) research finds that in 2018, 211 GW of existing(end of 2017) U.S. coal capacity, or 74 percent of the national fleet, was at competitive risk
from local wind or solar that could provide the same amount of electricity more cheaply. By
971 - Kenneth Dubin, “More than 60% of electric generating capacity installed in 2018 was fueled by natural gas”, Today in Energy,
U.S.EIA, 11 March 2019, see https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=38632, accessed 16 June 2019.
972 - BCSE, “Sustainable Energy in America—Factbook”, Business Council for Sustainable Energy, 2019.
973 - Richard Bowers, “Tax credit phaseout encourages more wind power plants to be added by end of year”, Today in Energy, U.S.EIA,
Republished 15 May 2019 to clarify the timing of the production tax credit phase-out, see https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.
php?id=39472&src=email, accessed 16 June 2019.
974 - Kenneth Dubin, “More than 60% of Electric Generating Capacity Installed in 2018 Was Fueled by natural gas”, U.S.EIA, op. cit.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

2025, at-risk coal increases to 246 GW, nearly the entire U.S. fleet.975 In April 2019, for the firsttime ever, the renewable energy sector (hydro, biomass, wind, solar and geothermal) generated
more electricity than coal-fired plants across the U.S.976 According to data from the Electric
Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT)—the transmission operator running the system that
supplies 90 percent of the state’s electric load—wind and solar generation topped coal’s output
in Texas in the first quarter of 2019, the first time that this has happened on a quarterly basis.977

CONCLUSION ON NUCLEAR POWER
VS. RENEWABLE ENERGY
The increasing public and political attention to the climate crisis and the need for rapid action
to reduce emissions favor economic and replicable mitigation options. Within the power
sector—notwithstanding the crucial role that energy efficiency has to play—it is becoming
increasingly clear that this logic supports renewable energy, currently primarily solar andwind, and not nuclear power. That is why some noted scenarios, including those from the
IPCC, envisage rapid and ambitious emissions reductions without an expansion or even a rolefor nuclear power in the longer term.
The dominance of renewables in the future vision of the power sector is not surprising given
current trends. In 2018, the total reported global investment decisions for the constructionof nuclear power totaled around US$33 billion for 6.2 GW, which is less than a quarter of theinvestment in wind and solar individually, with over US$134 billion investment in wind powerand US$139 billion in solar, and that year’s investment was skewed by the start of constructionof the extremely expensive Hinkley Point C in the U.K. The gulf between the investments inrenewables and nuclear is expected to widen, as the cost of renewables continue to fall, while
nuclear’s construction costs show the opposite trend. Between 2009 and 2018, utility-scalesolar costs came down 88 percent and wind 69 percent, while nuclear increased by 23 percent,according to Lazard.
The falling costs of renewables have been in part driven by higher deployment rates, creating
economies of scale, which in turn leads to higher deployment numbers. As a consequence,since the start of the millennium, there has been an increase in capacity of 547 GW for windand of 487 GW for solar, compared to the relative stagnation of nuclear power capacity, which
over this period increased by around 41 GW, including all reactors currently in Long-Term
Outage (LTO). Considering that almost 26 GW of nuclear power were in LTO as of the endof 2018, and thus not operating, the balance is an addition of just 15 GW operational capacity
compared to 2000—about 2.4 percent of the added wind-plus-solar capacity.
As a consequence, the energy source that has provided the greatest amount of additional
electricity over the last decade is non-hydro renewables, generating an additional 1,932 TWh
975 - Eric Gimon, Christopher T. M. Clack and Sarah Mckee, “The coal cost crossover: economic viability of existing coal compared to
new local wind and solar resources”, Energy Innovation and Vibrant Clean Energy, March 2019.
976 - U.S. EIA, “U.S. electricity generation from renewables surpassed coal in April”, 26 June 2019,see https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=39992, accessed 29 June 2019.
977 - IEEFA, “IEEFA U.S.: April is shaping up to be momentous in transition from coal to renewables”, Institute for Energy Economics& Financial Analysis, 25 April 2019, see http://ieefa.org/ieefa-u-s-april-is-shaping-up-to-be-momentous-in-transition-from-coal-torenewables/, accessed 1 May 2019.

| 226

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 of power. The sector with the second largest growth was coal, followed by gas and hydro, with
nuclear power and oil’s net production below their respective 2008 level.
However, what has become increasingly clear is that renewable energy is no longer just cheaper
than new-build nuclear, but it is now competitive with new coal—and increasingly with justthe running cost of operating, amortized nuclear and coal plants. Coal is the largest sourceof electricity globally, at about 38 percent, almost four times that of nuclear power. Therefore,
outcompeting coal will open up new opportunities for renewable energy, which will further
drive down their production costs and increasing the system integration experience, further
speeding up their deployment.
A power sector dominated by renewables is fundamentally different from many grids today. It
is a system that values and prioritizes flexibility and therefore encourages generators, storage
options and demand-side a Maanshan ctors that can rapidly respond to the availability of
the renewable resource and shifting demand. Consequently, the age of the large, centralized,
inflexible generators dominating supply is drawing to an end, hastening the demise of bothcoal and nuclear power.

| 227

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 228

CLIMATE CHANGE AND
NUCLEAR POWER
THE STAKES
The threats to the biosphere and human prospect from Climate Change978, increasingly termed
Climate Emergency979, demand six unprecedentedly rapid changes in the global economy:
ɆɆ replace energy use with “passive” ways to deliver the same services980;
ɆɆ use energy981 and energy-intensive materials982 with dramatically greater efficiency to serve
human needs by providing desired services in buildings, mobility, and industry;
ɆɆ convert devices that provide heat and mobility from burning fossil fuels to using lowcarbon energy carriers that can be made cleanly (electricity, hydrogen, renewable direct
heat, etc.);
ɆɆ drastically decarbonize energy supplies;ɆɆ remove excess carbon from the air, most readily by natural systems (forests, grasslands,
croplands, wetlands, oceans, etc.), though engineered systems are being tried too; andɆɆ reduce non-CO2 greenhouse gas emissions—particularly methane by drastically limiting
flaring, leakage and venting in the oil and gas industries.
Of these, decarbonization is progressing fastest in generating electricity—formerly by replacing
fossil‑fueled with nuclear power plants, whose share then declined since 1996 (see Figure 3),
and lately with even larger and faster-growing renewable generation. Experiments underway983
may add the option of burning fossil fuels and capturing and storing their carbon (as waste or
useful products) rather than emitting it.
Electricity is only about 20 percent of delivered energy984 , but that share is slowly rising.
Making electricity emits 38 percent (2016)985 of fossil carbon dioxide (CO2), the most important
greenhouse gas, so if existing nuclear generation (a tenth of global commercial electricity)
978 - IPCC, “Global Warming of 1.5˚C”, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Special Report, 2018,see https://www.ipcc.ch/sr15/.
979 - See The Climate Mobilization, “Climate Emergency Campaign”, see https://www.theclimatemobilization.org/climate-emergencycampaign, accessed 3 August 2019.
980 - E.g. daylighting to provide light, insulation to provide thermal comfort, densifying local services to avoid transport and/or
increase mobility options (walking, biking), etc.
981 - Amory B. Lovins, “How big is the energy efficiency resource?”, Environmental Research Letters, 13:090401,
18 September 2018, see https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/aad965/pdf, 4-min video here https://iopscience.iop.org/
article/10.1088/1748-9326/aad965, both accessed on 5 August 2019.
982 - Energy Transitions Commission, “Mission Possible”, 19 November 2019, see www.energy-transitions.org/mission-possible, findsthat industrial CO2 emissions can be abated by mid-century at reasonable cost, two-fifths by “circular economy” measures that wring
more work from fewer tons of cement, steel, aluminum, etc. Complementary further savings are being explored.
983 - Those mainly discussed chemically separate CO2 from flue gas right after burning fuels. So far they appear costly and notavailable in the short term, except arguably the Allam cycle for oxygen-and-natural-gas generation by using hot CO2 rather than steam
as the working fluid: Sonal Patel, “Inside NET Power: Gas Power Goes Supercritical”, 1 April 2019, POWER Magazine, see https://www.
powermag.com/inside-net-power-gas-power-goes-supercritical/, accessed 30 August 2019.
984 - IEA, “Key World Energy Statistics—2016 simplified world energy balances, Mtoe”, see https://www.iea.org/statistics/kwes/
balances/, excluding feedstock uses.
985 - IEA, “Global Energy & CO2 Status Report”, March 2019, p 21, see www.iea.org/geco/.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 229

displaced an average mix of fossil-fueled power generation and nothing else, it would offset theequivalent of 4 percent of total global CO2 emissions. Expanding nuclear power could displace
other generators—fossil-fueled or renewable. Nuclear power is frequently promoted as a nearlycarbon-free986 substitute for electricity made from coal and natural gas (oil-fired electricity is
negligible). Nuclear power is thus often presented as an essential part of the climate solution,deserving greater subsidy and policy support (called “not forcing nuclear out of the market”
or “not taking nuclear off the table” or “keeping the nuclear option open”)—either because
climate protection is so hard and urgent that all options would be needed, or to protect
existing jobs and infrastructures, or because other solutions would be too small, slow, costly,or impractical.

“

we must pay attention to carbon,
cost, and time, not to carbon alone”

Any claim that not expanding or sustaining nuclear power makes climate solutions “drasticallyharder and more costly”987 must depend on comparing the nuclear option with other options.
What criteria should such comparisons use? Past criteria have been incomplete. The coal-fired
power plants that make 38 percent of the world’s electricity and emit 30 percent of the world’s
total energy-related CO2 were built by paying attention to cost but not carbon. The nuclear
plants, which make just over one-fourth as much electricity but directly burn no fossil fuel, aredefended by paying attention to carbon but not cost. Yet to protect the climate, we must abate
the most carbon at the least cost—and in the least time—so we must pay attention to carbon,
cost, and time, not to carbon alone. This chapter explores that logic. An analytic framework andmetric to compare all options’ “climate-effectiveness,” including those with intermediatecarbon emissions such as gas-fired generation or cogeneration (of electricity plus useful heat),is available elsewhere988.
The more urgent climate protection becomes, the more vital it is to achieve the greatest
greenhouse gas reductions per dollar and per year. Being virtually carbon-free is not sufficient;
limited money and time also require “climate-effectiveness.” Any solution that saves lessgreenhouse gas emission per dollar, or does so slower, than it could have will stabilize theEarth’s climate less and later than it should have. That is, costly and slow options avoid lesscarbon per dollar and per year than cheaper and faster options could have, and thus makeclimate change worse than it should have been: even though they are low-carbon, they still
reduce and retard achievable climate protection compared to what was achievable. Yet suchcommon-sense comparisons are rarely discussed—leading to results akin to arguing that sincepeople are hungry, hunger is urgent, and filet mignon and rice are both food, both are essential

986 - A complex literature points out that nuclear power is not strictly carbon-free, not only because of fossil-fuel energy embodied
in its construction but also because of complex fuel-chain requirements: Benjamin K. Sovacool, “Valuing the greenhouse gas
emissions from nuclear power: A critical survey”, Energy Policy, August 2008, see https//:doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2008.04.017; and forcomparison with other energy technologies, see Fig. 7.6, p. 539, in T. Bruckner et al., “Energy Systems,” in O. Edenhofer et al., eds.,“Climate Change 2014: Mitigation of Climate Change”, Contribution of Working Group III to the Fifth Assessment Report of theIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Cambridge University Press, 2014, see www.ipcc.ch. These indirect emissions linked to
the nuclear system are far smaller than the direct CO2 releases from burning fossil fuel, and will not be considered further here. We
also do not assess here such other debated climate effects as krypton-85’s causing atmospheric ionization, nuclear heat release, nuclear
power’s effect on water resources and atmospheric humidity, or other indirect effects.
987 - IEA, “Nuclear power in a clean energy system”, 28 May 2019, see https://www.iea.org/publications/nuclear/.
988 - Amory B. Lovins, T. Palazzi, “Effectively decarbonizing the electricity system”, 2019, see https://www.rmi.org/decarb.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

to combatting hunger. Our priorities in feeding people or providing energy services must be
informed by relative cost and speed.

NUCLEAR POWER DISPLACESOTHER CLIMATE SOLUTIONS
Nuclear power is obviously not the only way to displace fossil-fueled electricity generation.
The past decade’s electricity transformation has morphed what were once considered
distinctive nuclear advantages—billion-watt scale, steady operation (most of the time), lowoperating cost—into the handicaps of gigantism and complexity, inflexibility, and greater
dispatch cost than nearly free-to-run renewables and demand-side resources (using electricity
more efficiently or more timely). Since each of these competing options can succeed only atthe expense of the others, nuclear advocates increasingly seek to ensure that their favoredtechnology replaces not only fossil fuels but also renewable power.
This might be rational if nuclear power were far more effective. For example, it mightseem obvious that nuclear power has avoided huge CO2 emissions from fossil-fueled power
plants—63 GTCO2 during 1971–2018 according to a new nuclear report by the OECD’s
International Energy Agency (IEA), which says
Without nuclear power, emissions from electricity generation would have been almost 20%
higher, and total energy-related emissions 6% higher, over that period.989

But that depends on what would have been bought in its place. IEA assumes mostly fossil-fueled
power plants.990 But if a portfolio of end-use efficiency or renewables or both had been backed,
matured, and bought instead (as U.S. President Truman’s Paley Commission recommended in
1953), they could have avoided as much or significantly more carbon emissions.991
Similarly, IEA states that
For countries lacking their own domestic energy resources, reliance on nuclear power can
reduce import dependence and enhance supply security. For example, in Japan, which must
import all its fuels for nonrenewable power generation, it is estimated that fuel imports overthe period 1965–2010 were reduced by at least 14.5 trillion yen (US$132 billion) due to thedevelopment of nuclear power.992

989 - IEA, “Nuclear power in a clean energy system”, 28 May 2019, op. cit.
990 - IEA, “Nuclear power in a clean energy system”, op. cit., p.9, Fig.4, Pp.53–4 show the assumed mix was about 44 percent gas,
12 percent coal, 44 percent renewable, and zero efficiency.
991 - What delayed the renewable revolution until the 2010s was not lack of technology or market opportunity but sparse attention,even outright opposition, by the same governments that instead lavished more than a trillion dollars of support on nuclear power.
Indeed, an early spurt of efficiency and renewables adoption in the U.S. in the mid-1980s—until its success crashed energy prices—demonstrated their early ripeness.
992 - IEA, “Nuclear power in a clean energy system”, 28 May 2019, op. cit.

| 230

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 231

However, fossil fuel saved by Japan’s nuclear program came at a very high economic cost.993
Building renewables instead, or providing more energy services by saving electricity, would
have cost less (at international prices), fuel costs would be zero and other operating costs
negligible, and accident costs practically zero, so those alternatives would have saved evenmore yen and no less carbon. Renewables and efficiency can thus “bolster energy security” atleast as well as nuclear power. Actually, Japan is poor in domestic fuels but rich in a scarcely
tapped renewable energy potential. Though energy trade and exchange are often advantageous,renewable resources are so abundant, diverse, and widespread that probably no nation lacks
sufficient renewable potential to meet its people’s needs efficiently.994“

Renewables and efficiency can thus “bolster energy security”
at least as well as nuclear power”

This tension between nuclear power and other low-carbon resources is not just theoretical.
They compete for the same markets, where efficiency and renewables, and often natural gas,
outcompete new and even existing nuclear plants. The nuclear industry’s unrivaled politicalpower has therefore been applied, initially in six of the United States, to adding new operating
subsidies for distressed nuclear plants (see United States Focus). These novel schemes
generally substitute political deals for market choices, carve out long-term mandatory nuclear
supply allotments not contestable by renewables, and in exchange offer renewable allotments
arguably smaller than continued market competition would have yielded. At the same time,
both nuclear and fossil-fuel industries and lobbyists press strongly at all policy levels to
inhibit, disparage, and suppress renewables, both directly and more subtly. For example, every
kWh of uncompetitive generation forced into the market by new subsidies or guaranteed tonuclear operators by preferential dispatch (like Japan’s nuclear must-run rule) is a kWh forwhich renewables cannot compete; and by letting utilities block renewable energy from theirgrids at any time, for any reason or no reason, Japan makes renewable developers’ revenues
unpredictable and their projects very hard and costly to finance.
Such rivalry occurs in many countries. Globally, an important subset of the technicalliterature criticizing renewable energy is prepared and publicized by nuclear advocates tosupport campaigning by the industry and its allies. For understandable commercial reasons,the nuclear industry has become one of the +most potent obstacles to renewables’ further
progress, seeking to strangle a competitor to defend its own prospects by diverting demandand capital to itself. The nuclear industry may complain of a reciprocal effort by practitioners
and advocates of renewable energy. This chapter examines that tangled competition oftechnologies, investments, and ideas.

993 - Building Japan’s nuclear plants (at historic average costs around ¥2014 286/We, plus ~10 percent for construction financing) cost
about as much as those fuel savings—plus their non-fuel operating costs and decommissioning, plus fuel-chain infrastructure (just the
Rokkasho reprocessing plant has already cost ¥2.9 trillion (US$26.8 billion), not counting earlier reprocessing, enrichment and fuelfabrication facilities), plus the officially estimated cost of the Fukushima Daiichi accidents—¥22 trillion (US$203 billion) estimatedby the government or ¥35–81 trillion (US$323–748 billion) estimated by Japan Center for Economic Research. Thus, it appears that sofar, cumulative cost is several times cumulative benefit, leaving little prospect of covering total costs over the fleet’s lifetime. As in theprevious example, this raises the question whether fuel and carbon could have been saved more cost-effectively.
994 - See e.g. IRENA, “Global Atlas for Renewable Energy: Overview of Solar and Wind Maps”, International Renewable Energy
Agency, 2014, see www.irena.org/publications/2014/Jan/Global-Atlas-for-Renewable-Energy-Overview-of-Solar-and-Wind-Maps;
IPCC, “Fifth Assessment Report”, 2014, pp. 525–526.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 232

NON-NUCLEAR OPTIONS SAVE
MORE CARBON PER DOLLAR
New-build Costs
New nuclear plants, lacking a business case995 (see Nuclear Power vs. Renewable Energy
Deployment), have never been bid into competitive wholesale power markets as competing
resources routinely are. Nearly all the nuclear plants under construction are transactions
between governments or state-owned enterprises not subject to market discipline andgenerally unable to engage capital markets without sovereign guarantees. As the International
Energy Agency (IEA) states:
Because of the sheer scale of the investment required, all but 7 of the 54 nuclear power plants
under construction globally [see Overview of Current New-Build] are owned by state-owned
companies and all but one of the projects in private hands (all of which are in advanced
economies) are subject to price regulation, which reduces risks to investors….This is unlikely
to change soon. In the current policy and market environment, it is difficult to see any
privately-owned utility embarking on a Generation III project in Europe or in North America
without strong government support to minimize financial risks to investors. In developing
countries, state-owned companies are responsible for all new nuclear investment.996

Table 19 | New-build Costs for Nuclear, Renewables and Efficiency
Lazard Ltd. (2018)a(in US$2018/MWh)

BNEFb(in US$2019/MWh)Market Actuals(in US$2018–2019/MWh)

Nuclear new-build151

195–344 (US)see country sections

Utility-scale solar

36–44

30–35

19 (Mexico)

Onshore wind power

29–56

27–32

22–26 (India), 17 (Mexico)

Electric end-use efficiency bought
by utility programs

0–50

—

U.S. average 23–31c (2009–12)

Notes

Source: Lazard, BNEF, Market Actuals

a - Lazard, “Levelized Cost of Energy Analysis–Version 12.0”, 8 November 2018,see www.lazard.com/media/450784/lazards-levelized-cost-of-energy-version-120-vfinal.pdf.
b - E. Giannakopoulou, T. Brandily, 1H 2019 LCOE Update, 26 March 2019, Bloomberg New Energy Finance subscriber database,see www.bnef.com, accessed 9 July 2019.
c - Megan A. Billingsley, Ian M. Hoffman, et al., “The program administrator Cost of Saved Energy for utility customer-fundedenergy efficiency programs”, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), March 2014, see https://emp.lbl.gov/sites/all/files/lbnl6595e.pdf; and Maggie Molina, “The best value for America’s energy dollar: a national review of the cost of utility energy efficiency
programs”, American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, Research Report U1402, 25 March 2014, see http://aceee.org/researchreport/u1402; also M. Wemple, “DSM Achievements and Expenditures 2013”, see http://www.esource.com/members/DSM-INDBMKAchievements-2013/DSM-Achievements-and-Expenditures-Study.

Even before the latest unhappy chapters such as Olkiluoto‑3 (see Finland Focus) andFlamanville‑3 (see France Focus), nuclear new-build’s real levelized electricity costs were
officially assessed as rising 130 percent in France during 2005–15, 29 percent in Japan, and995 - Ben Wealer et al., ”High-priced and dangerous: nuclear power is not an option for the climate-friendly energy mix”, German
Institute for Economic Research, July 2019, see www.diw.de/documents/publikationen/73/diw_01.c.670581.de/dwr-19-30-1.pdf.
996 - IEA, “Nuclear power in a clean energy system,” 2019, op. cit., p. 19. P 5 recommends for new-build support “long-term contracts,
price guarantees and direct state investments.”

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 233

75 percent in the U.S.997 Conversely, just in the past five years, U.S. solar and wind prices fellby two-thirds, putting new nuclear power out of the money by about 5–10-fold (see Nuclear
Power vs. Renewable Energy Deployment for additional details):
Nuclear new-build thus costs many times more per kWh, so it buys many times less climate
solution per dollar, than these major low-carbon competitors. That reality could usefully guidepolicy and investment decisions if the objective is to save money or the climate or both.
This gap is widening as nuclear costs keep rising and renewable costs falling. IEA agrees thatSolar PV costs fell by 65 percent between 2012 and 2017, and are projected to fall by a further
50% by 2040; onshore wind costs fell by 15% over the same period and are projected to fall byanother 10–20% to 2040.998

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) expected in 2018999 that onshore wind
power would get 27 percent cheaper during 2016–50 and photovoltaics 60 percent, so by
2050 they should cost respectively around US$27/MWh and US$18/MWh in good sites. Yet
those projections exceed Mexico’s respective unsubsidized low prices of US$19 and US$17 bid
in the previous year—33 years before 2050. The main outlier in acknowledging this pattern,
the IEA, is struggling to improve its renewables forecasting: since 2002, it has raised wind
power forecasts sixfold and solar forecasts 23-fold without ever catching up with reality, so
installed solar capacity is now over 50 times the 2002 forecast. That’s because IEA’s renewable
cost projections lag the market, and because its forecasting model, like other conventional
economic models, is structurally unable to handle increasing returns—as Thomas Friedmansays, “The more you buy, the cheaper it gets, so you buy more, so it gets cheaper.”“installed solar capacity is now
over 50 times the 2002 forecast”

IEA publishes many excellent studies on diverse topics, but its May 2019 nuclear report, thefirst in nearly two decades, is only partly consistent with evidence offered here, so we highlightsome points that are not. IEA shows a 2040 levelized new-nuclear cost of just US$2018100/MWh(34–71 percent below the market prices in Table 19), yet agrees it exceeds solar and onshore
wind power costs.1000 However, IEA projects those renewables to exceed US$50/MWh through2040 for Europe and North America “under the same financing conditions” as its nuclear
analysis (8 percent weighted-average cost of capital, 10–20‑year financing duration). Capital
markets evidently do not consider the risks equivalent, so U.S. wind power, for example,
currently pays <4.5 percent for its capital, and unsubsidized renewables from Mexico to India
are bid at around US$17–26/MWh. By inappropriately applying short-term nuclear-upgrade
financial assumptions to long-range renewable investments, IEA calculates renewable prices
for 2040 that are about twice today’s competitive renewable prices and exceed those observedin all major markets (except Japan) according to BNEF’s authoritative assessment.
997 - IEA/NEA, “Projected Costs of Generating Electricity 2015”, Nuclear Energy Agency, September 2015,
see www.oecd-nea.org/ndd/pubs/2015/7057-proj-costs-electricity-2015.pdf.
998 - IEA, “Nuclear power in a clean energy system”, 28 May 2019, op. cit.
999 - National Renewable Energy Laboratory, “Annual Technology Baseline: 2018 ATB Cost and Performance Summary”, 2018,see https://atb.nrel.gov/electricity/2018/summary.html.
1000 - IEA, “Nuclear power in a clean energy system”, 28 May 2019, op. cit.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 234

The business case for modern renewables is so convincing to investors that the latest official
U.S. forecast1001 foresees 45 GW of renewable additions from mid-2019 to mid-2022, vs. 7 GWof net retirements for nuclear and 17 for coal. With modern renewables now supplying nearly
two-thirds of the world’s 2017–18 net additions to global generating capacity, the marketplacerout is nearly complete: non-hydro renewables in 2018 got eight times as much investment as
nuclear power, nearly three times that of fossil-fueled generation.1002 The nuclear industry’s
spectacular failures to deliver on its promises of a nuclear renaissance are “scaring off
investors”.1003 But might they be drawn back by the latest round of claims that imminent newtechnologies will turn decades of rising nuclear costs into sharp declines?

“

even free steam from any kind of fuel, fission, or fusion
is not good enough, because the rest of the plant costs too much”

A current fashion in nuclear advocacy is to admit today’s reactors are uneconomic, then use
the novel candor thus displayed to bolster the claim that new reactor types or fuel systems
will make nuclear new-build competitive, so their development merits major public funding.
That hope, however, is tempered by an awkward fact: of the prohibitive capital cost of Gen-III+reactors, on the order of US$5,000–8,000+/ kW, ~78–87 percent is for non-nuclear costs.1004
Thus, if the other ~13–22 percent—the “nuclear island” (Nuclear Steam Supply System)—were
free, the rest of the plant would still be grossly uncompetitive with renewables or efficiency.
That is, even free steam from any kind of fuel, fission, or fusion is not good enough, because therest of the plant costs too much.
Equally simple logic clouds the economies of mass production hoped for from Small Modular
Reactors (SMRs). As a matter of physics, reactors do not scale down well, so the morecareful analysts acknowledge SMRs—including in China—would initially cost significantly(often about twofold) more per kWh than today’s gigawatt-scale reactors (see Small Modular
Reactors). But, as shown above, today’s new-build reactors already have ~5–10 times thelevelized cost of modern renewables (let alone efficiency) per kWh. On durable observed
learning curves (which nuclear power has never displayed), renewables will become anothertwofold cheaper by the time SMRs could be built, tested, and scaled. Two times 5–10 times
two is a factor of 20–40—far beyond any plausible saving from mass production. No nuclear
miracle is waiting to emerge. Small Modular Renewables, which do scale down well and whose
economies of mass production have several decades’ head start, have decisively won on cost.1005

1001 - Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, “Electricity Infrastructure Update for May 2019”,
see https://www.ferc.gov/legal/staff-reports/2019/may-energy-infrastructure.pdf.
1002 - REN21, “Global Status Report”, Fig. 50, 2019, see https://www.ren21.net/gsr-2019/.
1003 - IEA, “Nuclear power in a clean energy system”, 28 May 2019, op. cit., p. 22.
1004 - MIT Energy Initiative, “The Future of Nuclear Energy in a Carbon-Constrained World”, 2018, see https://energy.mit.edu/wpcontent/uploads/2018/09/The-Future-of-Nuclear-Energy-in-a-Carbon-Constrained-World.pdf, Table 2.2, p. 39, which also presents
10 percent typical and 16 percent best U.S. Light Water Reactor (LWR) cost fractions for the Nuclear Steam Supply System.
1005 - Or, as David Freeman said in his Foreword to WNISR2017: “The report makes clear, in telling detail, that the debate is over.”See Mycle Schneider, Antony Froggatt, et al., “WNISR2017”, 12 September 2017, see https://www.worldnuclearreport.org/The-WorldNuclear-Industry-Status-Report-2017-HTML.html#link0, accessed 22 July 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Non-Economic Arguments for Nuclear Need
Objections to renewables other than cost-effectiveness are therefore often raised, whether
expressed as technical issues or as hidden costs. These become ever less convincing as
experience gives grid operators comfort with new ways of operating power systems, and as
major heavy-electricals firms like General Electric, Siemens, Schneider and Asea Brown
Boveri (ABB) refocus their skills from nuclear power to distributed and renewable energy
systems. There are six main arguments:
ɆɆ Baseload: The venerable “baseload” concept—that grid stability needs gigawatt-scale,steadily operating thermal (steam-raising) power plants—reflects the valid and vital
economic practice of dispatching power at least operating cost, so resources with lowest
operating costs are run most. This traditional role of giant thermal plants led many
people to suppose that such plants are always needed. But now that renewables with nofuel cost are taking over the “baseload” role of being dispatched whenever available, those
big thermal plants are relegated to fewer operating hours, making the term “baseload”
an obsolete honorific. Thermal plants must now adapt to follow the net load left after
cost-effective efficiency, demand response, and real-time “base-cost” renewable supply
have been dispatched. Nuclear power’s limited flexibility, and its technical and economic
challenges when cycled, have thus become a handicap, complicating least-cost and stable
grid operation with a rising share of zero-carbon, least-cost variable renewables.1006 That is
why Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) found that early closure of its well running
Diablo Canyon reactors would save customers money and, by making the grid more
flexible, raise renewables’ share. Those reactors had become cheaper to close than to run:the power systems’ shift to renewables had turned them from an asset to a liability 1007, sothey’ll be replaced by competitively procured low-carbon resources, saving both money
and carbon.
ɆɆ Storage: Keeping the grid reliable as solar photovoltaics and wind power (both withaccurately forecastable but large variations in output) come to dominate electric
generation requires changes in markets, institutions, operations, habits, and mental
models. This has proven feasible in both theory and practice, as illustrated by national
statistics’ reports of 75 percent renewable coverage of annual electricity consumption in
Scotland (2018), 72 percent in Denmark (2017, domestic production only), 67 percent in
Portugal (2018), 40 percent in peninsular Spain (2018), and 38 percent in Germany (2018).
Most such grids sometimes achieve over 100 percent renewable supply, just as Japan’s
southern island of Kyushu reported 76 percent peak solar coverage on 23 April 20171008, andShikoku 102 percent on 3 May 20181009, despite Japanese utilities’ insistence that far smaller
renewable fractions will crash the grid. No “storage miracle” is needed, though some seemto be emerging. Whether solar, fossil-fueled, or nuclear, no generator needs 100 percent
1006 - Amory B. Lovins, “Do coal and nuclear generation deserve above-market prices?”, The Electricity Journal, Vol.30, Issue 6,
July 2017, see https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tej.2017.06.002, notes 58–68; and C. Morris, “Backing up Wind and Nuclear Power”, 2015,
see www.renewablesinternational.net/backing-up-wind-and-nuclear-power/150/537/86412/.
1007 - Amory B. Lovins, “Closing Diablo Canyon Nuclear Plant Will Save Money and Carbon”, Forbes, 22 June 2016, see www.forbes.
com/sites/amorylovins/2016/06/22/close-a-nuclear-plant-save-money-and-carbon-improve-the-grid-says-pge/, accessed 22 July 2019.
1008 - However, planned nuclear restarts would require such strong solar production to be curtailed under Japan’s “uneconomic
dispatch” rule.
1009 - Kazuhiko Miko, “Status and Challenges on the Power System in Japan”, Smart Community Department, New Energy andIndustrial Technology Development Organization, NEDO, IRED 2018 Session 1, 17 October 2018, see www.ired2018.at/Sessions/181017_
IRED2018%20Session1_NEDOver.5.pdf, accessed 22 July 2019.

| 235

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 236

backup, because one generator does not serve one load; rather, all generators serve the grid,
which in turn serves all loads. The grid is designed to back up failed plants with working
plants, so varying solar and wind power output are backed up by a diversified portfolioof other variable renewables, dispatchable renewables, or other resources. Solar and wind
power don’t need massive batteries so they can produce power steadily like big thermal
plants; rather, at least eight classes of grid flexibility resources1010 besides bulk electricalstorage and fossil-fueled backup are proven, available, cost-effective, and sufficient.1011
We don’t and needn’t yet know all details of their ultimate mix as renewables rise
toward 100 percent of generation; for now, we need only know that ample and affordable
integration options exist.1012 As climatologist Prof. Ken Caldeira says, “Controversies about
how to handle the [electricity] endgame should not overly influence our opening moves.”
ɆɆ Saturation: The claim that high fractions of variable renewables suffer inevitable “value
deflation” making them uncompetitive with thermal plants has turned out to be an artifact
of models that exclude many available forms of effective mitigation.1013 For example, in
the ERCOT (Texas) power pool, thorough installation by 2050 of eight kinds of demand
response can more than eliminate the supposedly problematic “duck curve” of steeply
ramping net load as solar output declines and home loads rise late on hot summer days.
Such a demand response strategy can also halve the summer daily load range, save onefourth of nonrenewable capacity, make renewable energy one-third more valuable, and pay
back in about five months.1014“

renewables generally have lower backup needs
and costs than nuclear plants”

ɆɆ Backup: A related argument often claims that more renewables mean steeply rising grid
integration costs. But such effects would be worse for nuclear-dominated grids because
nuclear plants are bigger, more transmission-dependent, and more prone to sudden,
lengthy, unpredictable failures (see Belgium Focus and France Focus). No kind ofgenerator is 24/7/365—they all break—but failure is more consequential in big units.
Variable renewables’ “firming costs”—the cost of diversification (which may include
network expansions), backup, storage, or other ways to ensure reliability standards are met
even when sun and wind falter—remain low (generally under US$5/MWh, nearly always

1010 - 1. Efficient use; 2. unobtrusively flexible demand; 3. modern forecasting of variable renewables’ output (often more accurately
than demand); 4. diversifying those variable renewables—wind and solar PV—by type and location; 5. dispatchability—integrating
wind and solar PV portfolios with the other renewables (not counting big hydropower, which could also be integrated more effectively
than now and with cogeneration that must run anyhow to satisfy its thermal loads; 6. distributed thermal storage worth buying
anyway, or managed thermal storage in buildings’ existing thermal mass; 7. distributed electrical storage worth buying anyway(e.g. smart charging and discharging of electric vehicles bought to provide mobility); 8. hydrogen, now most likely from renewableelectricity.
1011 - Amory B. Lovins, “Reliably integrating variable renewables: Moving grid flexibility resources from models to results”,
The Electricity Journal, Volume 30, Issue 10, December 2017, see https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tej.2017./11.006.
1012 - Tom W. Brown et al., “Response to ‘Burden of proof: A comprehensive review of the feasibility of 100% renewable-electricity
systems”, Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Volume 92, 11 May 2018, see https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2018.04.113.
1013 - Amory B. Lovins, “Do coal and nuclear generation deserve above-market prices?”, The Electricity Journal, Volume 30, July 2017,see https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tej.2017.06.002, and its note 81. An instructive four-part debate with two economists commissioned by
nuclear owner Exelon, which objected to the article’s §2 on climate-effective solutions, is in the October 2017 and December 2017
issues.
1014 - Cara Goldenberg et al., “Demand Flexibility”, Insight Brief, Rocky Mountain Institute, February 2018,see www.rmi.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Insight_Brief_Demand_Flexibility_2018.pdf.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 under US$101015) even at high renewable fractions.1016 Indeed, evidence is emerging1017
that the long-socialized but -unanalyzed corresponding firming costs to guard against
the intermittence (forced outages) of large thermal plants are severalfold larger than for(say) wind farms but are not charged to those thermal projects as they are to variable
renewables. Such costs can be major, as unbundled prices in ERCOT reveal1018, because
lumpy gigawatt-scale units require large reserve margin and spinning reserve, incurring
corresponding part-load penalties and cycling costs. Thus balancing a soundly diversified
portfolio of granular renewables may need severalfold fewer and cheaper resources thanutilities have already bought to manage their big thermal plants’ intermittence. If firming
costs are ascribed to specific technologies or projects, then symmetrical comparison favors
modern renewables; if firming costs are instead treated as inevitable system costs, as they
always were for thermal plants, then they don’t affect the choice of technologies. Eitherway, renewables generally have lower backup needs and costs than nuclear plants, despite
solar and wind power’s much lower capacity factors.
ɆɆ Ancillary services: Large thermal plants provide vital “ancillary services” to the grid, suchas frequency stability, voltage stability, short-circuit current, and fault management.
However, the same services have turned out to be available at lower cost and higher
quality from modern renewables’ smart inverters and their virtual inertia, and fromrepurposing retired thermal plants’ synchronous generators, without their prime movers,
as synchronous condensers (also called synchronous compensators): these can provide thesame services as a standard generator except active power, which can instead come fromrenewables or storage.1019
ɆɆ Resilience: Nuclear power’s claimed resilience benefits are compromised by many unpleasantattributes documented elsewhere.1020 They also exhibit a high historical “dry-hole” risk ofyielding no power or far less than expected. Of the 259 U.S. power reactors ordered during
1955–2016, just 28 (as of mid‑2017), some slated for closure, remained competitive in theirwholesale markets and had not yet suffered a year‑plus safety‑related outage.1021 And in an

1015 - Ryan Wiser, Mark Bolinger, et al., “2017 Wind Technologies Market Report”, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL),
published by the Office of Energy Efficiency, U.S.DOE, August 2018, p.70, see https://energy.gov/eere/wind.
1016 - Phil Heptonstall, Rob Gross, et al., “The costs and impacts of intermittency – 2016 update”, UK Energy Research Centre,
21 February 2017, see http://www.ukerc.ac.uk/publications/the-costs-and-impacts-of-intermittency-2016-update.html, accessed
21 July 2019.
1017 - Amory B. Lovins, “Do coal and nuclear generation deserve above-market prices?”, The Electricity Journal, July 2017, op. cit.,
notes 72–75.
1018 - American Wind Energy Association, “Wind energy helps build a more reliable and balanced electricity portfolio”, 2015,see http://awea.files.cms-plus.com/AWEA%20Reliability%20White%20Paper%20-202-12-15.pdf.
1019 - Tom W. Brown, et al., “Response to ‘Burden of proof: A comprehensive review of the feasibility of 100% renewable-electricity
systems”, Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Volume 92, September 2018, §3.5, see https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2018.04.113;
and Michael Milligan, “Sources of grid reliability services”, Milligan Grid Solutions, The Electricity Journal, Volume 31, Issue 9,
November 2018, see https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tej.2018.10.002.
1020 - Amory B. Lovins, “Do coal and nuclear generation deserve above-market prices?”, The Electricity Journal, July 2017, §9 (“Fuelon hand”), elaborated in Amory B. Lovins, “Comments by Amory B. Lovins, Cofounder and Chief Scientist, Rocky Mountain Institute”,
FERC, Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Grid Resiliency Pricing Rule, Submission 813728, Docket RM18‑1‑000, 23 October 2017,see https://elibrary.ferc.gov/idmws/file_list.asp?accession_num=20171023-5099; and Amory B. Lovins, “Errata—Correcting
23 October 2017 Comments (Submission 813728 by Amory B. Lovins”, FERC, Submission 813743, see https://elibrary.ferc.gov/idmws/
file_list.asp?accession_num=20171023-5109; both accessed 30 August 2019.
1021 - Amory B. Lovins, FERC comments, op. cit.

| 237

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

emergent risk, at least 100 reactors are reportedly in low‑lying coastal sites vulnerable tosea-level rise that may occur during their lifetimes.1022

Costs of Lifetime-Extended Nuclear Plants
IEA’s previously mentioned 2019 report admits new reactors can’t compete in the market, but
strongly encourages decades of lifetime extension for existing reactors to save both money andcarbon. IEA says that will cost US$201740–55/MWh and will undercut US$50+/MWh renewables(calculated, as noted above, at about twice observed levels, let alone forecast levels, by assuming
nuclear rather than actual renewable financing conditions). On its face, this comparison invites
skepticism. If lifetime extension and continued operation can beat renewables through 2040,
why will it need subsidies, and why won’t all operators make that bet with their own money?
In fact, many reactors, in particular in the U.S., cannot beat new renewables in day-to-day
market competition, and are shutting down one or more decades before their licenses expire
unless bailed out by new subsidies (see United States Focus). Wouldn’t any reactors not yet
upgraded become even less competitive after each is burdened by roughly US$0.5–1.1+ billionof backfitting/upgrade costs? And wouldn’t their viability then erode further as renewables
get cheaper, nuclear plants age, economic dispatch against growing renewable fleets reduces
their run hours (spreading their fixed operating costs over smaller sales), and safety standards
continue to ratchet?
Since new solar and wind power at market prices, though nearly pure capital costs, empiricallyundercut the upgrade cost plus operating cost of nuclear lifetime extensions, how does IEA
conclude that foregoing those extensions would need a third of a trillion dollars more capital
investment (over a third of it for grid expansions to reach “less accessible sites”)? And why is
IEA so concerned about the Nuclear Fade Case’s raising wind and solar output1023 in advanced
economies by only one‑fifth above the Sustainable Development Scenario—growing threerather than two times as fast as occurred during 2000–17, both well below respected market
forecasts? IEA’s excellent analysts may have answers, but their untransparent analysis raises
doubts. We therefore explore next the most basic and intractable, yet often least noticed, causeof existing reactors’ uncompetitiveness: the routine operating costs that according to IEA (p.4)
put “most nuclear plants in advanced economies…at risk of closing prematurely.”

Operating Costs of Existing Nuclear Plants
Even reactors that already implemented their lifetime-extension and safety-upgrade
investments, or are excused by compliant regulators from making them, and whose original
1022 - J. Vidal, “What are coastal nuclear power plants doing to address climate threats?”, 8 August 2018, see www.ensia.com/features/
coastal-nuclear. Of 51 US nuclear sites, 55 were already found subject to beyond‑design-basis flood hazards, but in January 2019, theU.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission voted 3–2 not to require upgrades to address those identified hazards; see S.Q. Stranahan, “Why
don’t U.S. nuclear regulators acknowledge the dangers of climate change?”, The Washington Post, 14 March 2019. In July 2019, NRC
staff also proposed fewer safety inspections, fuzzier descriptions of problems, and other weakening of safety oversight. See S. Cooke,“Safety: NRC Proposes Reduced Inspection Effort”, NIW, 19 July 2019.
1023 - IEA, “Nuclear power in a clean energy system”, 28 May 2019, op. cit., p.63 uses implicit capacity factors of 25 percent forwind-plus-solar production. For comparison, the actual 2018 US averages were 37.4 percent for wind power, 26.1 percent for PVs, and23.6 percent for solar thermal, compared with 73.3 percent for landfill gas and municipal solid waste, 49.3 percent for other biomass
including wood, and 77.3 percent for geothermal; see U.S.EIA, “Electric Power Monthly—Table 6.7.B. Capacity Factors for Utility Scale
Generators Not Primarily Using Fossil Fuels, January 2013–May 2019”, 24 July 2019, see www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.php?t=epmt_6_07_b.

| 238

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 239

construction costs were already fully amortized, face normal operating costs. Once assumed
too small to discuss, these have become a major obstacle to many plants’ continued profitable
operation, especially as their age increases the frequency and cost of major repairs. The
US$2.9 billion annual losses Bloomberg reported in June 20171024 , spread among 54 GW (over halfof the U.S. nuclear installed capacity), probably remain unsustainable for units not yet retiredor rescued for a few years by direct subsidies (see United States Focus). Their operating-cost
data are often commercial secrets, but aggregated data reveal fundamental uncompetitivenessagainst most electric-efficiency investments and many modern renewables.
The “total generating cost” assessed here excludes initial construction and financing cost,and applies only to subsequent operations. It comprises three terms: fuel (including wastemanagement and decommissioning provisions), operation and maintenance (“O&M,”
including normal business costs like taxes and insurance), and Net Capital Additions (postconstruction investments for repairs, upratings, or safety upgrades that are large enough thatthey are capitalized rather than expensed; they are poorly reported and often omitted, theirboundary with fixed O&M is rather vague, and those two costs’ sum rises nonlinearly withage). Closed plants do not continue to incur these operating costs.

United States
The Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), the leading industry trade group in the U.S., hassummarized in three-year averages the Electric Utility Cost Group’s (EUCG) proprietaryannual compilation of total generating cost. No list is available of exactly which units areincluded, hence whether any operating units are excluded, and at what stage a troubled or
retired unit is removed from the database, but the broad pattern is clear, as illustrated inTable 20. Each quartile includes roughly 25 reactors.
Table 20 | Average Nuclear Generating Costs in the United States (by Quartile)
US$2017 per busbar MWh

2012–142013–15

2014–16

Quartile 1

30.26

29.78

28.81

Quartile 2

35.50

34.97

34.40

Quartile 3

43.51

41.72

40.69

Quartile 4

62.17

55.42

51.57

Source: Nuclear Energy Institute, private communication to Amory B. Lovins, 26 July 2018

How are these nuclear operating costs evolving? Table 21 represents the same EUCG analysts’
average generating costs by category and year (US$2017/busbar MWh).1025

1024 - Jim Polson, “More Than Half of America’s Nuclear Reactors Are Losing Money”, Bloomberg, 14 June 2017,see www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-06-14/half-of-america-s-nuclear-power-plants-seen-as-money-losers.
1025 - NEI, “Nuclear by the numbers”, March 2019, see https://nei.org/CorporateSite/media/filefolder/resources/fact-sheets/nuclearby-the-numbers.pdf, 2018 data from April 2019 edition converted to 2017 US$ using GDP Implicit Price Deflator, previous data from
April 2018 edition. IEA, “Nuclear power in a clean energy system”, 28 May 2019, op. cit., p. 34, confusingly equates variable cost with
fuel cost, overlooking variable O&M cost.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 240

Figure 51 | Cost Evolution of New Renewables vs. Operating Nuclear

Renewable Electricity vs. Nuclear Operating Costs U.S./Worldin US$/MWh
Levelized US$2014/MWh

Nuclear Operating Costs (OPEX)

220

Q4
Q3
Q2
Q1

U.S. Utility-scale
Solar Average PPAs

200

2012–2014 2014–2016

180

Renewable Bids

160

Lowestunsubsidized
world bids

140

December 2017 Xcel Colorado median bids
w/Storage
w/o Storage

120
100

Solar Wind

PPA = Power Purchase Agreement

U.S. Wholesale Average
Power Price Range

80

U.S. Wind Average
PPAs

60

60

40

40

20
0

U.S. Average Nuclear Operating Costs

20© RMI/WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

Notes

0

1026

Sources: various compiled by Amory Lovins, Rocky Mountain Institute, 2019

Wind and Solar PPAs: US generation-weighted-average Power Purchase Agreements prices, by year of signing.
Nuclear operating cost: fuel, operation and maintenance, and Net Capital Additions average and quartiles. See Table 20 and Table 21.

Figure 51 represents nuclear plants’ total generating costs vs. competing costs during 2003–18.
This reveals that although average U.S. nuclear operating costs have declined since 2012—
especially in the costliest quartile, where the most distressed units have begun to retire—
the average wholesale long-term Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) prices for both new wind
power (blue curve) and new utility-scale solar power (gold curve) have declined even faster.
This leaves most operating reactors and the 2018 average U.S. nuclear operating costs (redcurve) uncompetitive by ~US$10+/MWh with those renewable sources (including wind powerplus storage, the blue diamond), or even with the best unsubsidized international renewable
prices (blue and gold round dots), let alone with often-cheaper energy efficiency. Nuclear
operating costs for the four-decade-old U.S. fleet probably have limited scope to fall further,but renewables have far more; they’re a rapidly moving target that nuclear operating costs areunlikely ever to hit.
1026 - Updated through June 2018; August 2019 Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) data show wind power PPAs below$20 and continuing their downward trend.
Solar world bids: Chile (US$29.1/MWh, August 2016) and Mexico (US$27 /MWh, February 2017; US$19.2/MWh, November 2017)
Wind world bids: Morocco (January 2016), Mexico (US$17/MWh, November 2017)
Xcel Energy December 2017 median levelized solar bids: US$36/MWh and US$30/MWh with and without storage—wind bids US$21/
MWh and US$18/MWh with and without storage
U.S. Wind and Solar PPAs: LBNL
Wholesale price range: RMI Analysis of BNEF Prices, Tariffs and Auctions, US Power & Fuels from subscribers database.
Nuclear operating costs: NEI, “Nuclear by the Numbers”, April 2018, plus April 2019 (for 2018 datum) using Electric Utility Cost Groupdata, converted to 2014 US$ using GDP Implicit Price Deflator.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 241

Table 21 | Average Nuclear Generating Costs in the United States (by Category)
US$2017 perbusbar MWh

FuelOperation& Maintenance

Net Capital
Additions

Total

2012

7.77

11.21

22.37

41.35

2013

8.01

8.49

21.67

38.17

2014

7.47

8.47

21.67

37.60

2015

7.10

8.24

21.56

36.91

2016

6.90

6.89

20.87

34.65

2017

6.45

6.66

20.50

33.61

2018

5.86

6.01

19.30

31.17

Source: Nuclear Energy Institute, “Nuclear by the Numbers,” 2018 and 2019

FranceIn the world’s second-largest nuclear fleet, the world’s largest nuclear operator Électricitéde France’s (EDF’s) standard price for up to 100 TWh/y of electricity from fully amortized
nuclear plants, equivalent to about a quarter of historic fleet production (ARENH1027), hasbeen set since 2012 at €42/MWh1028 (US$201255.5/MWh). The public Court of Accounts (Courdes Comptes) assessed average nuclear generating costs1029 at €201954/MWh (US$201960.6/MWh)for 20101030, €201963/MWh (US$70.7/MWh) for 20131031, and €201966/MWh (US$74/MWh) for
the second half of 20141032; this 22-percent rise was due to higher maintenance costs, including
Net Capital Additions for stricter post-Fukushima safety standards. However, the Court of
Accounts stressed in its 2016 annual public report1033 that the costs are even more sensitive
to a potential drop in production. This is exactly what happened as generation dropped by
9 percent, from 417 TWh in 2015 to 379 in 2017, with a slight recovery to 393 TWh in 2018.
Romain Zissler, senior researcher at the Renewable Energy Institute in Tokyo, estimated2017 French operating costs at €201981/MWh (US$91/MWh), based on lower generation1034 .
Published European Power Exchange (EPEX) baseload prices suggest many French reactors
are losing money. These nuclear operating costs are less than half realistic new-build costs,
yet are several times competitive new-renewables costs. In the second half of 2018, BNEF
priced unsubsidized onshore wind power in France at US$67/MWh and solar at US$59/
MWh1035, putting unamortized nuclear plants under severe pressure now and even amortized
units soon. No wonder the French Environment & Energy Management Agency concluded
1027 - ARENH = accès régulé à l’énergie nucléaire historique, or Regulated Access to Historic Nuclear Energy.
1028 - Commission de Régulation de l’Énergie, “ARENH”, Undated (in French),see https://www.cre.fr/Pages-annexes/Glossaire/ARENH, accessed 18 July 2019.
1029 - Converted to €/US$2019 by WNISR.
1030 - Cour des Comptes, “The costs of the nuclear power sector”, Press Release, 8 February 2012,see https://www.ccomptes.fr/sites/default/files/EzPublish/Costs_nuclear_power_sector_press_release.pdf, accessed 18 July 2019.
1031 - Cour des Comptes, “Le coût de production de l’électricité nucléaire—Actualisation 2014”, Communication à la Commissiond›Enquête de l›Assemblée Nationale, May 2014 (in French), see https://www.ccomptes.fr/sites/default/files/EzPublish/20140527_
rapport_cout_production_electricite_nucleaire.pdf, accessed 18 July 2019.
1032 - Cour des Comptes, “Le Rapport Public Annuel 2016–Tome I: Les Observations”, February 2016 (in French),see https://www.ccomptes.fr/sites/default/files/EzPublish/RPA2016-Tome-1-integral.pdf, accessed 18 July 2019.
1033 - Ibidem.
1034 - Romain Zissler et.al., “The Rise of Renewable Energy and Fall of Nuclear Power–Competition of Low Carbon Technologies”,
Renewable Energy Institute, 6 February 2019, see www.renewable-ei.org/en/activities/reports/20190206.php.
1035 - Ibidem.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

in October 20181036: “From an economic point of view, the development of a new generation
nuclear technology would not be competitive for the French electricity system”—even at anassumed production cost of “a hypothetical €70/MWh” (US$79.5/MWh).

Germany
Detailed operating costs for German reactors appear not to be readily available, but applying
2018 European Commission generic assumptions1037 to the seven operating reactors implies a2020 snapshot value (probably below the levelized value) of €201322.5/MWh (US$201331/MWh)for O&M alone, plus fuel, probably plus Net Capital Additions. The implied total does not lookdurably competitive with modern renewables.

SwedenSwedish nuclear operating costs were estimated in 2016 by Vattenfall’s head of generation at
SEK250/MWh (US$201629/MWh) excluding the SEK70/MWh (US$20168/MWh) nuclear operating
tax then in force)—above the SEK220/MWh (US$201626/MWh) typical wholesale electricity
price1038, which was not expected to rise over the next 5–10 years1039. As operating costs were
expected to durably exceed income, the Vattenfall manager concluded: “Nuclear is in trouble.
Profitability needs to improve.” Ringhals‑1 and ‑2 are therefore being closed; Oskarshamn‑1
and -2 and Barsebäck‑1 and ‑2 already were.

Japan
Japan once had the world’s third-largest nuclear fleet, but after the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi
disaster started to unfold, all 54 reactors were shut down by 2014, and every year since, they’vebeen outgenerated by solar power. By 2018, restarts left nine operating units generating about
50 TWh–243 TWh less than in 2010. Of that gap, ~75 percent was covered by energy savings
plus renewable growth, or 82 percent when adjusted for economic growth so that efficiency
gains are not understated.1040 This is despite Japanese policy’s comprehensive efforts tocontrol solar expansion and suppress wind power growth—a regime aptly summarized as “acombination of barriers to access the grid, unfavorable treatment once connected, difficult
technical requirements and tedious rather than effective environmental regulations”1041 raising
renewable costs to multiples of international levels. Thus more than four-fifths of the market
1036 - French original: “D’un point de vue économique, le développement d’une filière nucléaire de nouvelle génération ne serait pas
compétitif pour le système électrique français”, see ADEME, “Trajectoires d’évolution du mix électrique 2020–2060”, October 2018.
1037 - P. Capros, E. Dimopoulou et al., “Technology pathways in decarbonisation scenarios”, ASSET, Commissioned by the
EU Commission, Directorate-General for Energy, July 2018, kindly compiled by Leonard Göke, TU‑Berlin, pp. 45–47, see https://
ec.europa.eu/energy/sites/ener/files/documents/2018_06_27/technology_pathways_-_finalreportmain2.pdf. The report does not
specify what year’s Euros it uses, but it solicited data on forms (pp 54–55) stating EUR 2013 , as used in the EC’s previous (2016) forecast.
1038 - Torbjörn Wahlborg, “Swedish nuclear power–Present status and outlook”, Vattenfall, 3 March 2016,see https://wecfinland.fi/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/2016-03-03-Vattenfall-and-Fingrid-Final.pdf.
1039 - WNN, “Vattenfall seeks to return reactors to profitability”, 8 January 2016,see www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Vattenfall-seeks-to-return-reactors-to-profitabili. Actually, prices did then rise.
1040 - Prof. Kenichi Oshima, Personal Communications to Amory B. Lovins, 20 July 2019 and 1 , 3 and 7 August 2019; also 2018 updatefrom REI’s senior researcher Romain Zissler, Personal Communication to Amory B. Lovins, 4 July 2019.
1041 - Tomas Kåberger, Romain Zissler, “Solar PV cheaper than LNG-power in Japan makes massive deployment possible”, Renewable
Energy Institute, 26 May 2017, see www.renewable-ei.org/en/activities/column/20170526.html. REI’s 2017 Expert Meeting dissected
these policies.

| 242

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 previously served by nuclear power is already gone. If Japan didn’t make nuclear units mustrun, and began dispatching renewables in merit order, fossil‑fueled generation would be largely
squeezed out between efficiency and renewables. But are nuclear restarts even worthwhile?
Only the owners know, but skepticism seems warranted.
A 2015 government study 1042 estimated average 2014 nuclear operating costs at ¥1,500/
MWh (US$201512.6/MWh) for fuel including reprocessing, ¥3,500/MWh (US$201529.4/MWh) for
O&M, and ¥400/MWh (US$20153.4/MWh) for additional safety measures (upgrades classifiable
as Net Capital Additions). This total of ¥5,400/MWh (US$201545.4/MWh) excludes a further¥1,300/MWh (US$201510.9/MWh) for policy measures (such as location grant and Monju
surcharge) and ¥300/MWh (US$20152.5/MWh) for “costs for nuclear accident risk measures”(assuming an early Fukushima accident cost that was roughly half current estimates).
An 82‑line‑item compilation of the nuclear operating costs reported in the financial accounts ofJapan’s nine nuclear utilities for 2001–181043 is in reasonable agreement, averaging ¥6,350/MWh(in mixed nominal JPY)1044 during 2001–10; whether that includes all net Capital Additions
is unclear, but the total, more than US$201552/MWh, is similar to the operating costs for the
costliest quartile of United States reactors documented in Table 21. After the Fukushima
Daiichi accident began in 2011, Japanese operating costs soared to astronomical values due
to low or zero output, then declined to a still-huge ¥25,000/MWh (US$2018225/MWh) in
2018. In theory, that could scale back to roughly the pre-Fukushima ¥6,000/MWh (US$56/
MWh) if Japan’s nuclear share of total generation rebounded from 2018’s 6 percent to thepre-Fukushima ~30 percent, but it can’t, because about half of the units have been abandoned(see Japan Focus for details) and many durable new costs have been loaded onto the rest. The
more units retire, the fewer will be left to share that burden—though the government willprobably find ways to charge all electricity customers and taxpayers anyhow.
Leading Japanese experts also consider these cost estimates conservative, and note that Japaneseutilities chose to close 12 reactors totaling almost 7 GW during 2015–19 (through April) as they
faced safety-upgrade costs officially estimated to total just ¥60 billion (US$20170.5 billion)
per reactor, equivalent to ¥600/MWh or ~US$5/MWh1045. Sure enough, a mid‑2019 Japanese
report1046 based on surveys of the ten nuclear owners quintupled those safety upgrade costs
from ¥0.9 trillion to ¥4.8 trillion (US$8.32 billion to US$44.2 billion)—on the order of US$1–
1.5 billion per reactor.
Conversely, the same 2015 government study assumed utility-scale solar power costing¥24,200/MWh (US$2015200/MWh) in 2014 would cost ~¥14,000/MWh (US$2015120) in 2030,
while onshore wind power would fall from ¥21,600 to ~¥18,000/MWh (from US$2015180 to~US$2015150/MWh); yet Japanese developers achieved those 2030 projections in 2019. Those
prices are also manyfold higher than recent unsubsidized international bids that are now below
1042 - Power Generation Cost Analysis Working Group, “Report on Analysis of Generation Costs, Etc. for Subcommittee on Long-term
Energy Supply-demand Outlook”, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Provisional Translation, May 2015,
see www.meti.go.jp/english/press/2015/pdf/0716_01b.pdf.
1043 - Using April–March Fiscal Years, Prof. Kenichi Oshima, Personal Communications to Amory B. Lovins, 1, 3 and 7 August 2019.
1044 - Considering the strong variation of the exchange rate over the period, a US$ value is not meaningful here.
1045 - Romain Zissler, “The Beginning of the End for Nuclear Power in France”, Renewable Energy Institute, 16 November 2017,see www.renewable-ei.org/en/activities/column/20171116.html.
1046 - Suguru Kurimoto, “Nuclear safety costs in Japan surge to staggering heights”, Nikkei Asian Review, 9 July 2019,see https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Energy/Nuclear-safety-costs-in-Japan-surge-to-staggering-heights.

| 243

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

US$20/MWh or ¥2,100/MWh for both technologies, in resource zones not greatly inferior to
Japan’s (see Figure 51 above and Nuclear Power vs. Renewable Energy Deployment). Thus
even pre‑Fukushima nuclear operating costs, let alone much higher post-Fukushima ones, canbeat Japan’s artificially inflated 2019 renewable prices, but would lose to globally competitiveones.
It would therefore appear that average Japanese nuclear operating costs are so uncompetitive
with unconstrained solar and wind power that wide nuclear restarts would require intensified
suppression of renewable development in Japan, contrary to the government’s 2019 Basic
Energy Plan, and reversal of current policies to promote free competition in liberalized power
markets. This comparison does not count further repairs and upgrades likely to be needed torestart many plants that have been shut down for years, and it assumes that restarted plants
will run reliably for decades more without significant mishaps.

South Korea
Though operating costs in Korea are not transparent, the EPSIS online database reports1047 theregulated settlement prices that nuclear plants receive on the Korea Power Exchange—based
not on competition but on annual reviews of fixed costs and monthly reviews of fuel costs by
the Generation Cost Assessment Committee, comprising mainly interested parties, based on
submissions by the generators. In nominal US$ (not adjusted for inflation), the administerednuclear prices held nearly steady around US$34/MWh during 2001–13, rose to US$59/MWh in
2016, then slightly decreased again to US$54/MWh. These prices include fuel costs that rosefrom ~US$2.8/MWh before 2010 to US$5/MWh in 2018. O&M and Net Capital Additions data
do not seem to be available. Subtracting the reported capacity payment1048 of KRW9.15–10.07/
MWh (US$7.9–8.7/MWh) from the US$54/MWh total payment in 2018 implies that regulated
operating-cost payments may be around US$45/MWh—high enough to call into question
nuclear operations’ competitiveness with renewables and certainly with efficiency.
However, US$45/MWh is about 2.5 times the operating cost reported by South Korean officials
to the OECD’s Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA)1049 as US$18.2/MWh.1050,1051 Thus South Korean
nuclear operating costs are incompletely reported, just like the South Korean construction
costs that several scholars found unanalyzable1052—useful to recall when low values are cited.

1047 - KPX, “EPSIS–Settlement > by Fuel Type”, Undated, see http://epsis.kpx.or.kr/epsisnew/selectEkmaStmBftChart.
do?menuId=050601&locale=eng.
1048 - Joonki Yi, Chin Pyo Park, “Electricity Regulation in South Korea”, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC, 26 March 2019,see www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspex?g=4a7f6594-b6b4-4249-a928-a0e02ed683e5.
1049 - IEA/NEA, “Projected Costs of Generating Electricity 2015”, September 2015, op. cit.
1050 - NEA says South Korea’s 2015 levelized cost of nuclear energy was US$201351.37/MWh at a 10 percent discount rate. That
includes fuel and waste costs of US$8.58/MWh, O&M of US$9.65/MWh (apparently all variable, as it does not depend on discount rate),
refurbishment (apparently equivalent to Net Capital Additions) of zero, and decommissioning of zero. That value also does not seem toinclude provisions for the compensation fund (limited accident insurance), probably waste management, or lifetime extension.
1051 - Vara Ha, “Nuclear Power Plant Policy Comparison between the U.S. and Republic of Korea”, International Development,
Community and Environment (IDCE), Clark University, 17, May 2016, see https://commons.clarku.edu/idce_masters_papers/17.
1052 - See MIT Energy Initiative, “The Future of Nuclear Energy in a Carbon-Constrained World”, op. cit., pp 34–35: “Of greatest
concern are data from the Chinese and South Korean builds, where a lack of transparency and detail makes it difficult to scrutinize
and validate available cost estimates. For example, there is some uncertainty in the cost of the South Korean build in the United ArabEmirates because it may not include all of the owner’s cost….” See also p 223.

| 244

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 245

Similarly, operating-cost data exist for China, now the world’s third largest fleet, and Russia,
the fifth largest, but are unavailable to independent analysts and are considered unreliablewithout extensive but published supporting detail.

Climate Implications of Substantial Nuclear Operating Costs
The foregoing evidence suggests that closing many, perhaps most, operating nuclear units will
not directly save CO2, but can indirectly save more CO2 than closing a coal-fired plant, if thenuclear plant’s larger saved operating costs are reinvested in efficiency or cheap modern renewables
that in turn displace more fossil-fueled generation. Therefore, closing both coal plants andcostly-to-run nuclear plants (with reinvestment of avoided operating costs and subsidies)
makes sense—the former to save carbon directly, and the latter to save money whose climateeffective reinvestment can then save more carbon.

“

closing both coal plants andcostly-to-run nuclear plants makes sense”

Specifically, using the latest available U.S. data shown above (for 2014–16), half the operating
U.S. reactors had average operating costs over US$40/MWh, one-fourth over US$51/MWh.
These generating costs can all be avoided by closing the reactors1053 . So can the billions ofdollars’ new subsidies to induce those plants’ owners to keep them running, such as US$16.5/
MWh in Illinois (see United States Focus and Annex 4 in WNISR2018 for a state-by-state
analysis). Those avoided costs can then be reallocated, voluntarily by the owner or compulsorily
by regulators, to more climate-effective investments that cost less and hence save more carbon
per dollar. To make up a simple example:
If a reactor costing US$50/MWh (US$5¢/kWh) to run is closed, the regulator can require thesaved operating cost (ignoring any avoided subsidy) to be reinvested in helping customers
use electricity more efficiently. If that efficiency investment costs the utility a typical averageof US$25/MWh (US$2.5¢/kWh), two kWh will be saved for each nuclear kWh not generated,saving twice as much carbon and thus doubling climate-effectiveness. Shopping carefully for
1¢/kWh efficiency could stretch that advantage to fivefold.

Renewables at those prices could do the same and are interchangeable with efficiency, but
efficiency is already delivered to the retail customer, avoiding delivery costs averaging ~US$41/
MWh. Even if most of that delivery cost is fixed and sunk, efficiency adds value by freeing
existing grid assets to serve new loads without building more facilities.
This argument about “climate opportunity cost,” straightforwardly applying bedrock economic
principles, has been published but ignored for more than a decade, and lately elaborated in theElectricity Journal.1054 The nuclear industry, like nearly all financial and economic reportage(and now the IEA), instead describes the uncompetitiveness of its product as a market
failure—a claim that the market does not properly recognize or value nuclear power’s lowcarbon generation. Its increasingly adopted remedy—new state-level long-term subsidies for1053 - Decommissioning costs must be paid later anyhow, and increase with longer operation. Greater discounting for later timing
affects accounting values but not real resource costs.
1054 - Amory B. Lovins, “Do coal and nuclear generation deserve above-market prices?”, The Electricity Journal, July 2017, op. cit., §2.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

nuclear power alone, with little or no showing of financial need, no competition, and often adisruptive prompt-closure gun held to the legislators’ heads—does not correct a market failure
but creates it.1055 It is a deliberate and direct attack on the very markets that are rejecting
nuclear power in favor of its cheaper competitors.
The new around-market subsidies restrict competition, slow innovation, and destroy market
mechanisms painstakingly built over decades to guide efficient choices. The new subsidies
also “distort pool-wide prices, crowd out competitors, discourage new entrants, destroy
competitive price discovery, reduce transparency, reward undue influence, introduce bias, pickwinners, and invite corruption.”1056 Two deans of electricity regulation warned such targeted
subsidies may “unravel U.S. power markets altogether.”1057 This is a high price to pay for resultsthat a superior market-based way to acquire low- or no-carbon resources could readily yield
without burdening customers or taxpayers. It is also intrusive and unnecessary. No politicalintervention to go around markets is needed or appropriate if existing markets are properlyused. As the eminent retired utility and nuclear regulator Peter Bradford counsels,
Instead of having political leaders and regulators make pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey-type1058
guesstimates of how much nuclear power we’ll need, how long we’ll need it, and how much
we should pay for it, we should adjust our power markets to procure the needed low-carbon
electricity. Beyond that, we can regulate emission results where necessary. We should
minimize mandating the continued use of existing power plants. Instead, our power markets
can prioritize low-carbon technology just as they have proven themselves capable of doingwith reliability and demand response.1059

The new nuclear subsidies have convulsed state politics, scrambled federal grid regulation,
distracted market actors from doing their jobs, and damaged competition, competitors,
customers, and markets to achieve only a slight climate effect. The 13 reactors so far rescued
or likely to be rescued for some number of years generate a few percent of U.S. electricity andwill likely be matched in output by a few years’ renewable growth; indeed, those low-carbon
renewables would otherwise have increasingly occupied the same market space if allowedto (Midwest wind power developers complain of blocked grid access meant to shield legacy
assets from competition). Any climate benefit is also temporary, because the relentless drop in
renewable prices will once more undercut nuclear costs.
Often unnoticed is that climate is just the latest of many rationales successively adduced
for customers to pay again for the same assets. First, the nuclear industry was created, its
fueling infrastructure built, and the reactor fleet financed by a vast array of often‑opaque
taxpayer‑funded federal subsidies that rivaled or exceeded the plants’ construction cost and1055 - Peter A. Bradford, “Wasting time: Subsidies, operating reactors, and melting ice”, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, Volume 73,
12 December 2016, see https://doi.org/10.1080/00963402.2016.1264207.
1056 - Amory B. Lovins, “Do coal and nuclear generation deserve above-market prices?”, The Electricity Journal, July 2017, op. cit.
1057 - The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, “Wood And Bradford’s Amicus Brief”,
Case 1:16‑cv‑08164‑VEC, Doc. 125‑1, Filed 24 March 2017, posted in Tim Knauss, “NY nuclear subsidies kick in Saturday, but highstakes legal challenge looms”, Syracuse.com, 27 March 2017, see www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2017/03/ny_nuclear_subsidies_
kick_in_saturday_but_high-stakes_legal_challenge_looms.html.
1058 - An old American party game in which a series of blindfolded children, spun around to disorient them, try to pin a paper tail onto
the back end of a wall-mounted picture of a donkey.
1059 - Peter A. Bradford, “Wasting time: Subsidies, operating reactors, and melting ice”, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists,
December 2016, op. cit.

| 246

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 exceeded the value of their output.1060 Second, decades of regulated electricity tariffs alreadycovered the plants’ entire construction, financing, and operating costs, including a just andreasonable return on investment. Third, when owners like Illinois-based Exelon (the largest
U.S. nuclear operator) later insisted on creating competitive wholesale markets where they
expected to earn more profit than under regulation, customers reimbursed them for the“transition costs” (excess capital costs) of stranded assets totaling ~US$135 billion1061, mostly—at least US$70 billion—for nuclear plants. Then, when many nuclear plants couldn’t compete inthose wholesale markets, the owners (while reporting robust profits to Wall Street) demanded
and generally got from their host states new multi-billion-dollar-a-year subsidies to keep
running their distressed reactors. Then Exelon’s successful request to Federal regulators for
greater capacity payments—because many plants couldn’t clear power-pool auctions, and thestate subsidies had upset the delicate balance between state and federal regulation—harvested
a fifth stream of payments.
The owners naturally try to get paid as much and as many times as possible for the same assets,
and they’re doing so with great skill and formidable political muscle. The climate emergency
offers them a new opportunity for payment, so long as decisionmakers focus only on carbon,
not dollars. But why should electricity markets and climate protection become collateral
damage—the practical effect of escalating nuclear subventions? How could the agreed goalof climate protection instead be achieved by technology-neutral market mechanisms that let
nuclear power compete fully and fairly with other solutions?

PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS FOR
CLIMATE-EFFECTIVENESS
An obvious and attractive process would be for power pools or other authorities to run anannual series of laddered all-resource auctions to elicit bids for demand- or supply-side carbonsaving electrical resources. Connecticut has already established such a low-carbon-resources
auction, though only on the supply side—a big omission, since a third of the U.S. does compete
demand-side options in normal all-resource auctions, and an unbought efficiency potential fourtimes total U.S. nuclear output costs less than one-third as much as the average U.S. nuclear

1060 - In 2011, Doug Koplow assessed these at ~US¢0.8–4.6/kWh for shareholder-owned and US¢1.7–6.3/kWh for public utilities,
excluding ~US¢8.3/kWh of historic subsidies that originally launched the U.S. nuclear enterprise, see Doug Koplow, “Nuclear Power:
Still Not Viable Without Subsidies”, Earth Track Inc, Union of Concerned Scientists, February 2011, see http://www.ucsusa.org/
nuclear-power/cost-nuclear-power/nuclear-power-subsidies-report, accessed 30 August 2019. New U.S. nuclear plants already getslightly higher federal operating subsidies per kWh than new U.S. wind farms, plus far larger capital subsidies (~US¢5–12/kWh); evenexisting nuclear plants’ capital subsidies often exceed the wholesale price they receive. And historically, nuclear power has been far
more subsidized per kWh than renewables. See Nancy Pfund, Ben Healey, “What Would Jefferson Do?—The Historical Role of Federal
Subsidies in Shaping America’s Energy Future”, DBL Investors, September 2011, see http://i.bnet.com/blogs/dbl_energy_subsidies_
paper.pdf, as cited in Jeff Johnson, “Long History Of U.S. Energy Subsidies”, Chemical & Engineering News, Volume 89, Issue 51,
19 December 2011, see https://cen.acs.org/articles/89/i51/Long-History-US-Energy-Subsidies.html, accessed 19 July 2019.
1061 - B.A. Holden, “Deregulation May Cost Electric Utilities US$135 Billion Over 10 Years, Study Says”, The Wall Street Journal,
7 August 1995, summarizing P.B. Fremont & R.K. Hornstra, “Stranded Costs Will Threaten Credit Quality of U.S. Electrics”, Moody’s
Investors Service Research, August 1995. The US$70 billion estimate is from M.D. Yokell, D. Doyle & R. Koppe, “Stranded Nuclear
Assets and What to Do About Them”, Presentation to DOE-NARUC Electricity Forum, April 1995, cited by Office of Coal, Nuclear,
Electric and Alternate Fuels, “Changing Structure of the Electric Power Industry: An Update”, DOE/EIA-0562 (96), Departmentof Energy, U.S.EIA, December 1996, p.79, which said nuclear stranded costs could decline to US$43–63 billion if restructuring werecompleted by 1996 or 2000 respectively.

| 247

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 248

operating cost1062 . California also acquires resources by competitive bid, and plans to use thatprocess to replace the retiring Diablo Canyon nuclear units with other low-carbon resources atleast cost.

“

an unbought efficiency potential four times
total U.S. nuclear output costs less than one-third as much as
the average U.S. nuclear operating cost”

Continued nuclear operations might initially win such auctions, perhaps for a year or two, until
cheaper new efficiency and renewables could ramp up (a delay of virtually no or even favorable
climate consequence, as discussed below), but ultimately the market, not state legislators,
would choose the cheapest ways to avoid the most time-integrated carbon.
Another economically sensible way to enable low-carbon resources to compete fairly with
gas-fired combined-cycle power plants would be for market-makers and regulators to countthe market value of fuel-price volatility 1063 when comparing fossil-fueled with constant-priceresources, notably efficiency and renewables, whose price is set 20–30 years ahead by contract(making those assets financially riskless except insurable and diversifiable counterpartyrisk). Basic financial economics absolutely requires such risk adjustment; ignoring it—today’scommon practice—is guaranteed to misallocate risk and capital. Counting fuel-price volatility
would probably help nuclear power compete with natural gas even more than carbon pricing
could, so it’s puzzling that the nuclear industry isn’t backing this reform.
However, even without this risk adjustment, and even with low-priced U.S. fracked gas, theonce-strong business case for new and even most existing combined-cycle gas plants has
collapsed: a “clean portfolio” of efficiency, flexible demand, renewables, and storage canprovide all the same outcomes more cheaply and without CO2 .1064 Even some new gas-fired
plants in gas-rich Texas are going broke. Contrary to old assumptions that solar power is more
capital-intensive up front than gas power, today they have nearly identical cashflow profiles.
Both in the U.S. and in countries with costlier natural gas, whether or not dangerous methane
escape is properly valued and abated, and with or without nuclear power, long-run gas-fired
generation and its climate impact look likelier to trend down than up.
Pricing carbon and counting the market value of price volatility would help nuclear power
to compete against natural gas and coal—but not against modern renewables or efficiency,
because they emit no carbon and burn no fuel. The nuclear industry tends to blame its
competitive woes more on gas than on renewables1065, which it often seems reluctant torecognize as a legitimate and effective competitor—perhaps because that would call into
1062 - Amory B. Lovins and Rocky Mountain Institute, “Reinventing Fire—Bold Business Solutions for the New Energy Era”, 2011. It
found that “efficient end use, using 2010 technologies adopted at a historically reasonable pace, could quadruple 2010 electric end-use
efficiency by 2050 at an average levelized technology cost of US$20170.72¢/kWh, i.e.<1¢ including normal transaction costs”; see Amory
B. Lovins, “Response to D. Murphy & M. Berkman, ‘Efficiency and nuclear energy: Complements, not competitors, for a low-carbon
future”, Electricity Journal, Volume 30, Issue 8, October 2017, see https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tej.2017.09.012.
1063 - Amory B. Lovins, Jon Creyts, “Hot Air About Cheap Natural Gas”, Rocky Mountain Institute, 6 September 2012,see https://rmi.org/hot-air-cheap-natural-gas/.
1064 - Mark Dyson et al., “The Economics of Clean Energy Portfolios”, Rocky Mountain Institute, May 2018,see https://rmi.org/insight/the-economics-of-clean-energy-portfolios/.
1065 - The 2018 MIT nuclear study previously cited considers competitiveness only against coal or gas, not renewables or demandside resources. Solar and wind competition is later considered only under outdated and constrained assumptions unrelated to modern
energy system design. See MIT Energy Initiative, “The Future of Nuclear Energy in a Carbon-Constrained World”, 2018, op. cit.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 question many nuclear advocates’ claims (reviewed above) that renewable power at scale isinfeasible1066, requiring nuclear “baseload” power for grid stability. But competitors can win
whether or not you believe they work. Claims that renewables can’t scale will become as
discredited by increasingly ubiquitous real-world experience as claims that climate change is ahoax. And if carbon is properly priced, nuclear power will remain as exposed as now to its mostformidable competitors—low-carbon renewables and efficiency.

Substitution for Existing Nuclear Plants:
5 Case Studies from the U.S.
In substituting non-nuclear low-carbon resources for nuclear power, one timing issue bears
mention. Closing a nuclear plant is often claimed to increase CO2 emissions by requiring an
immediate, and impliedly a long-term, shift to fossil-fueled generation, typically by naturalgas. Five U.S. states where reactors were rather hastily closed were analyzed by the Unionof Concerned Scientists (UCS)1067 to test this hypothesis through 2017 (with efficiency data
through 2016 and power-sector CO2 data through 2015):
ɆɆ Nebraska’s time-series was too short to be meaningful, as the Fort Calhoun reactor was
only closed in October 2016.
ɆɆ Wisconsin closed the Kewaunee reactor May 2013, cutting nuclear generation by 5 TWh/y.
In addition, it cut coal-fired generation by 5 TWh/y. It substituted 5 TWh/y with gas-fired
generation and 3 TWh/y with efficiency plus renewables (three-fourths of the nuclear loss),and cut power-sector CO2 emissions 4 percent.
ɆɆ Florida, another state with relatively unfavorable policies, closed Crystal River‑3 inSeptember 2009, lost 3 TWh/y (vs. 2008) net of 0.4 GW of upratings, raised gas-fired
generation by 57 TWh/y, cut coal-fired by 16 TWh/y, raised efficiency and renewables by
4 TWh/y, and cut 2008–15 power-sector CO2 emissions by 11 percent.
ɆɆ California, with strong efficiency and renewable policies and institutions, closed thetwo San Onofre reactors in January 2012, losing 19 TWh/y, while cutting both coalfired generation (by 2 TWh/y) and gas-fired (by 0.1 TWh/y), but also raised efficiency
and renewables by 47 TWh/y or 2.5 times the nuclear loss, which it erased by the end of
2014; power-sector CO2 emissions fell 7 percent during 2009–15 (not measured from theexceptionally high-hydro, low-gas year 2011).
ɆɆ In the two years after Vermont Yankee closed in December 2014, that hydro-dominatedstate cut gas generation, raised other generation, raised efficiency and renewables, andput its tiny power-sector CO2 emissions back into decline. A separate Rocky Mountain
Institute analysis of data for the whole New England power pool (ISO‑NE) found thatduring 2015–16, the nuclear loss was offset 91 percent by renewables and hydro-dominated1066 - The nuclear industry’s positioning itself as a carbon-free replacement for coal and gas power when seeking U.S. statesubsidies on climate grounds also sits uneasily with its alliance with coal when seeking US federal subsidies based on the current
administration’s fondness for both coal and nuclear plants’ supposedly resilient attributes. Many major utilities also own both nuclear
and coal plants.
1067 - Steve Clemmer, UCS, personal communication, 6 October 2018.

| 249

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

imports plus another 69 percent by reduced sales; the pool’s CO2 emissions rose by onetenth as much as the 2001–15 reduction, but only for a little over one year.1068
Such comparisons are complex and sometimes ambiguous due to interfering effects such as
price-driven fuel-switching. Nonetheless, this state-level evidence suggests that if abrupt
nuclear closure raises CO2 by switching from nuclear to fossil generation, that rise lasts justa few years—or less in states that allow and encourage efficiency and renewables to compete
fully with fossil-fueled generation.
Even this temporary CO2 blip can be avoided altogether by providing enough lead time fororderly replacement of retiring nuclear units. Nuclear owners have tended to threaten abrupt
closure that would emit more carbon (even if temporarily), cause political shocks from job losses,
and perhaps disrupt grids, all in the hope of pressing politicians to provide new subsidies. In
essence, such extortionate tactics hold the climate, for which the owners express such concern,
hostage to short-term commercial gain. But responsible and accountable owners can and dotake the opposite course. Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) and its stakeholders all
agreed to an 8–9-year closure lead time for Diablo Canyon1069 —similar to the planned phaseout in Germany (see Figure 27)—leaving ample time to ramp up competitive procurement of
low-carbon replacements and honorable transitions for workers and communities.
Temporarily burning more gas while efficiency and renewables fill a brief nuclear-retirement
gap is also unimportant, because most surplus gas-fired plants are very efficient and CO2’s
effects are long-term1070: what matters is its cumulative long-term release. Gas abatement
by efficiency and renewables will last far longer than the retired (generally elderly) nuclear
plant’s remaining economic life, so the abatement will be at least equal in quantity but longerlasting, bringing greater climate benefit. Moreover, where efficiency or renewables cost lessthan continued nuclear operations and are bought instead, that shift will save more carbon per
dollar. On both cost and speed, therefore, the time-integrated climate benefit will exceed theclimate benefit of continued nuclear operation.

NON-NUCLEAR OPTIONS SAVE
MORE CARBON PER YEAR
If new or old nuclear power is generally not cheaper than efficiency and renewables, and hencecannot save as much carbon per dollar, might it still be desirable or necessary because it’sfaster to deploy at scale to help deal with the climate emergency? That claim is often made but
seldom analyzed. For the past decade, WNISR has been illustrating the fact that renewables
have been outpacing nuclear in added kilowatt-hours year after year (e.g. Nuclear Power vs.
Renewable Energy Deployment and Figure 40, Figure 41 and Figure 42). In 2016, a nuclear
advocacy group suggested that in some countries historically nuclear power would have beenrolled out faster than renewables. That image of nuclear power’s allegedly rapid deployment
speed has been encapsulated by The Breakthrough Institute and promoted by a Science
1068 - ISO New England, “Net Energy and Peak Load Report”, Editions 2000, 2015 and 2016,see www.iso-ne.com/isoexpress/web/reports/load-and-demand/-/tree/net-ener-peak-load, accessed 7 May 2017.
1069 - Amory B. Lovins, “Closing Diablo Canyon Nuclear Plant Will Save Money and Carbon”, Forbes, 22 June 2016, op. cit.
1070 - The opposite is true of associated methane releases, but the gas infrastructure is already in place, U.S. gas is in surplus, and little
or no upstream development will be required to fuel the brief extra gas burn.

| 250

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 251

paper1071, which received withering technical criticism1072 . Its key meme claims that nuclear
growth is generically “much faster” than renewable growth (see Figure 52):
Figure 52 | Average Annual Increase of Nuclear, Wind, and Solar—Using Breakthrough Institute Methodology

Source: Cao et al., Science, 5 August 2016, Op. Cit.

Rocky Mountain Institute’s Amory B. Lovins1073 has redrawn that seemingly convincing
graph—adopting for the sake of argument its highly problematic per-capita metric—to correct
its many analytic errors and include its omitted same-country comparisons, where sevenof ten countries grew renewables faster than they grew nuclear (see Figure 53).1074 Here we
update that corrected graph with three more years’ data (2016–18). While the previous chart
implies that all nuclear programs outpace all renewable programs, the next chart shows noclear advantage to either—but the rapid nuclear growth was decades ago and long ended, while
the rapid renewable growth is here, now, and accelerating (see Nuclear Power vs. Renewable
Energy Deployment).

1071 - Junji Cao, Armond Cohen, et al., “China-U.S. cooperation to advance nuclear power”, Science, Volume 353, 5 August 2016,see https://doi.org/10.116/science.aaf7131.
1072 - Philip Johnstone, Benjamin K. Sovacool, et al., “Nuclear power: serious risks”, Science, Volume 354, 02 December
2016, see https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aal1777 ; Amory B. Lovins, “Nuclear power: deployment speed”, Science, Volume 354,
2 December 2016, see https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aal1808 ; Junji Cao, Armond Cohen, et al., “Nuclear power: Deployment speed—
Response”, Science, Volume 354, 2 December 2016, see https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aal2561; Amory B. Lovins, T. Palazzi, et al.,“Relative deployment rates of renewable and nuclear power: A cautionary tale of two metrics”, Energy Research & Social Science,
Volume 38, April 2018, see https://doi.org/10.1016/j.erss.2018.01.005; Amory B. Lovins, “Corrigendum to ‘Relative deployment rates
of renewable and nuclear power: A cautionary tale of two metrics’”, Energy Research & Social Science, Volume 46 (correcting a minor
Supplementary Materials point affecting no content in the main paper), December 2018, see https://doi.org/10.1016/j.erss.2018.08.001.
1073 - Amory B. Lovins is a contributing author to WNISR2019.
1074 - Amory B. Lovins, “Corrigendum to ‘Relative deployment rates of renewable and nuclear power: A cautionary tale of two
metrics’”, Energy Research & Social Science, Volume 46, December 2018, see https://doi.org/10.1016/j.erss.2018.08.001.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 252

Figure 53 | Average Annual Increase of Nuclear, Wind, and Solar—According to Rocky Mountain Institute*

Average Annual Increase in Low-Carbon Net Electricity Generation per Capita
During Decade of Peak Scale-up
in added kWh per capita per year
0

100

200

Sweden (1976-1986)
France (1979-1989)
Scotland (2008-2018)
Belgium (1978-1988)
Scotland (1979-1989)
Slovakia (1978-1988)
Denmark (2007-2017)
Sweden (2005-2015)
Germany (2008-2018)
Taiwan (1977-1987)
South Korea (1995-2005)
Germany (1975-1985)
United Kingdom (2008-2018)
Ireland (2008-2018)
Portugal (2003-2013)
United States (1981-1991)
Japan (1977-1987)
Spain (2003-2013)
Spain (1979-1989)
United States (2008-2018)
California (1983-1993)
Italy (2007-2017)
California (2008-2018)
Japan (2008-2018)
United Kingdom (1987-1997)
China (2008-2018)
Costa Rica (2006-2016)
China (2008-2018)
Italy (1972-1982)
India (2008-2018)
India (2008-2018)

Note

300

400

500

600

Nuclear
Solar
Wind
Other Non-Hydro Renewables
Bold

Cases absent in Cao et al., added here
Renewable growth faster than
the same countries’ nuclear programs© RMI/WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

1075

Sources: Various (see citation), compiled by Amory B. Lovins, Rocky Mountain Institute, July 2019

*This graph represents RMI revision of Cao et al.’s Figure S2. See Figure 52.
The same nine nuclear and eight renewable cases are shown; seven nuclear (Scotland, Spain, California, United Kingdom, Italy, China, and India) and sevenrenewable cases (Scotland, Sweden, Ireland, Portugal, United Kingdom, Costa Rica, and India) are added (bold), using data through 2015. Scotland is part of
the UK grid and electricity market, and its nuclear plants were built under UK policy, but Scotland does have autonomy in choosing renewable energy, whichgrew faster per capita.
This chart was first described, documented, and published in A.B. Lovins, “Corrigendum to ‘Relative deployment rates of renewable and nuclear power: acautionary tale of two metrics’”, Energy Research and Social Science, 2018, 38:188–192, doi: 10.1016/j.erss.2018.08.001, then updated through 2018 by Jacob W.
Glassman using the mid-2019 versions of the same data sources.

Through 2015, modern renewable energy globally was growing faster than nuclear power ever
had; through 2018, ten countries moved up in the chart. The world’s most aggressive nuclear
program (in China) has been outgenerated by China’s wind power since 2013, and 2.2:1 by
China’s non–hydro renewable portfolio in 2018. The corresponding Indian factor is 3.1‑fold.
(See also Nuclear Power vs. Renewable Energy Deployment.) Though the Swedish andFrench nuclear power programs were uniquely aggressive relative to those nations’ populations,those programs were not economically successful—France can scarcely afford to modernize
its existing nuclear fleet, let alone replace it—and both nations are now shrinking nuclear andgrowing renewables to fit today’s economics, politics and EU legal obligations.
Deployment speed depends on both installation rate and project lead time. A newassessment1076 finds that new nuclear plants take 5–17 years longer to build than utility-scale
1075 - All data shown are from BP, “Statistical Review of World Energy 2019”, except for Costa Rica and Scotland, taken from online
national statistics. BP nuclear outputs are divided by 1.0546 to convert gross to net.
1076 - Mark Z. Jacobson, “Evaluation of Nuclear Power as a Proposed Solution to Global Warming, Air Pollution, and Energy Security”,
Cambridge University Press, 15 June 2019, see https://web.stanford.edu/group/efmh/jacobson/WWSBook/WWSBook./html.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 253

solar or onshore wind power, so existing fossil-fueled plants emit far more CO2 while awaiting
substitution—62–102 gCO2/kWh more, equivalent to 11–18 percent of average U.S. grid carbon
intensity; thus if China had invested its nuclear capital in wind power instead, the quicker
deployment could have cut its CO2 emissions by ~3–6 percentage points. While some may
quibble about calculational details, these estimates suggest a sound principle—a significant
climate penalty for buying slow rather than fast resources. For resources that are both slow andcostly, that climate opportunity cost is compounded.

“

If nuclear power is neither cheaper nor fasterthan modern renewables and energy efficiency,
it fails both tests of climate-effectiveness, so its substitution
would reduce and retard climate protection”

In addition, in illustrative countries with major nuclear power programs, the institutional“formative phases” needed to support scaleup took about 30 years (in France and China—the
two most concerted efforts), compared with nine years for comparable renewable milestones(in China and Germany)1077. The extra twodecade delay for countries lacking mature nuclear
institutional and industrial infrastructures would make their nuclear scaleup far too late.
If nuclear power is neither cheaper nor faster than modern renewables and energy efficiency,
it fails both tests of climate-effectiveness, so its substitution would reduce and retard climate
protection. How does that square with continued calls for nuclear continuation and expansion,on grounds that over decades have evolved from replacing insecure oil to replacing polluting
coal to fighting poverty and protecting the Earth’s climate?

IS NUCLEAR POWER A CLIMATE IMPERATIVE?
Michael Liebreich, an eminent energy commentator who founded and led the data and analytic
pioneer Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF), recently encapsulated many populararguments that despite nuclear power’s acknowledged challenges, its continued use is vital forclimate protection.1078 In paraphrase: After investments nearing US$3 trillion, solar and wind
power supply just 7 percent of the world’s electricity. Solar and wind power are unlikely to add
as much capacity in the next decade—2–4 times their growth so far—as basic climate goals
require. Decarbonizing heating, transport and industry proportionately would need even more
electricity, raising that goal to 10–15‑fold (or 5–10‑fold with more-efficient use). So to “haveany hope of...[2C˚, let alone 1.5C˚], we need to keep as many existing nuclear power stations as
possible operating, and to extend their lives for as long as possible,” though new-builds shouldswitch to Small Modular Reactors or other designs yet to be developed.
In fact, nobody claims that just wind and solar, or efficiency, or any single option, can“decarbonize the economy in the near term”. Though solar and wind are ~84 percent of recent
non‑hydro electric capacity additions, modern (excluding big hydro) renewable energy not1077 - Amory B. Lovins, Titiaan Palazzi, et al., “Relative deployment rates of renewable and nuclear power: A cautionary tale of two
metrics”, Energy Research & Social Science, Volume 38, April 2018, see https://doi.org/10.1016/j.erss.2018.01.005.
1078 - Michael Liebreich, “Liebreich: We Need To Talk About Nuclear Power”, Bloomberg New Energy Finance, 3 July 2019,see https://about.bnef.com/blog/liebreich-need-talk-nuclear-power.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

only outgenerates nuclear electricity, but also covers three‑fourths more global final energy
consumption (in all forms, not just electricity) than nuclear power delivers after 65 years’
effort.1079
The math about needing far more electricity to decarbonize all sectors appears to doublecount difficulties. Electric cars and trucks are severalfold more efficient than fueled ones, andseveralfold more efficient still if light and low-drag1080; with smart charging, electric vehicles
wouldn’t need materially more electric capacity, but could earn back (some practitioners
assert) up to half their sticker price by selling their distributed storage’s valuable services backto the grid. Likewise, the far greater efficiency of modern electric heating and cooking can cut
primary energy use by several- to manyfold, saving fossil fuels both in direct use and in power
generation.
Liebreich overlooks important parallel abatements of greenhouse gases other than CO2: e.g.,OECD’s International Energy Agency (IEA)1081 says upstream hydrocarbon industries can
profitably abate methane emissions sufficient to stabilize the global methane cycle—equivalent,
if sustained to 2100, to instantly abating every Chinese coal-fired power plant’s emissions.
Such complementary efforts can shrink the climate challenge and buy more time to abatecarbon emissions.
The models that simulate ways to reverse climate change were at least as conservative as
the climate-science models that predict it, especially understating the practical scope for
profitable energy efficiency 1082 . Liebreich assumes only modest efficiency. IPPC’s 1.5˚C Special
Report1083 features an important 2018 low-energy-demand scenario1084 that robustly reaches
1.5˚ with no overshoot, no engineered carbon-removal technologies, and severalfold lower
supply investments. Yet it looks technically conservative in both demand and supply. The latest
evidence across all sectors1085 reveals that the energy efficiency resource is severalfold bigger
and cheaper than had been thought, and can often yield increasing returns, just like modern
renewables. Thus an efficiency-centric approach makes Liebreich’s daunting renewable
expansions much smaller, easier, and cheaper.

1079 - REN21, “Renewables 2019–Global Status Report”, June 2019, see www.ren21.net, shows from IEA data that modern
renewables—which exclude hydropower (3.6 percent) and traditional biomass (7.5 percent)—covered 7 percent of the world’s total
final energy consumption in 2017: modern renewable heat 4.2 percent, non‑hydro electricity 2.0 percent, and mobility biofuels
1 percent. For electricity generation alone at the end of 2018, nuclear power provided 10 percent, vs. wind 5.5 percent, photovoltaics
2.4 percent, biopower 2.2 percent, geothermal and others 0.4 percent—a total of 10.5 percent, excluding 15.8 percent from hydropower(of which roughly a fifth is small hydro, <50 MW, which most analysts consider a modern renewable source).
1080 - Amory B. Lovins, “Oil-Free Transportation”, AIP Conference Proceedings, Volume 1652:129–139, 2 April 2015,see https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4916175; Transportation Research Board, “Superefficient Vehicles and Easier Electrification”, January 2018
annual meeting, session 466, presentation P18-21428, see http://amonline.trb.org/2017trb-1.3983622/t009-1.3999602/466-1.4125818/p1821428-1.4116638/p18-21428-1.4125823?qr=1; Amory B. Lovins, “Reframing Automotive Fuel Efficiency”, in journal review, 2019.
1081 - IEA, “World Energy Outlook 2017”, Chapter 10, pp. 399–436, see https://webstore.iea.org/world-energy-outlook-2017.
1082 - Amory B. Lovins, Diana Ürge-Vorsatz, et al., “Recalibrating Climate Prospects”, Environmental Research Letters, in review asof August 2019. Nearly all Integrated Assessment Models greatly understate efficiency potential, and none properly models and canaccount for actual renewable growth.
1083 - IPCC, “Special Report: Global Warming of 1.5˚C”, 2018, op. cit.
1084 - Arnulf Grübler, Charlie Wilson, et al, “A Low Energy Demand Scenario for Meeting the 1.5˚C Target and Sustainable
Development Goals without Negative Emission Technologies”, Nature Energy, 3:517–525 , 4 June 2018, see https://doi.org/10.1038/
s41560-018-0172-6. Rocky Mountain Institute plans 2019 publications showing the technical conservatism of some key assumptions,particularly in mobility and industry.
1085 - Amory B. Lovins, “How big is the energy efficiency resource?”, Environmental Research Letters, 13:090401, 18 September 2018.

| 254

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Yet his essay does help focus on important questions about cost, timing, and decision making.
First, cost: Shouldn’t investments seek to deliver the most climate solution with limited money?
Life-extending existing reactors, let alone building more, would fail that basic test.
Next, speed: How can new reactors help meet Liebreich’s 2030 need when it takes about thatlong to build one and far longer to build hundreds or thousands? when newcomer countries
need two decades more to build the institutions for nuclear than for renewable scaleup? andwhen only a few outlier countries (even using the deeply flawed per-capita metric) have everbuilt nuclear faster than they built renewables? Liebreich therefore suggests new kinds ofreactors, allegedly quicker to license and build; but how is it a practical and urgent climate
solution to divert massive public resources from proven, off-the-shelf energy options to
speculative reactor types and fuel chains that do not exist, may never exist, have unknown
costs and public acceptance, and (history suggests) will take one or more decades just to
develop and test (see Small Modular Reactors)? Aren’t resources, attention, and time devoted
to nuclear new-build therefore diverted from faster and more climate-effective solutions?
The first TW of modern renewables, excluding the 1 TW of hydropower existing in 2013,
took about 15 years to install to mid‑2018. BNEF expects the second TW will take ~5 years, to2023, but cost 46 percent or ~US$1 trillion less.1086 It won’t stop there (see Nuclear Power vs.
Renewable Energy Deployment). If the increasing returns that drive this exponential growth
are even partly sustained, as most experts expect, order-of-magnitude scaleups of solar
and wind power by 2030 are reasonable1087, and have already been achieved or surpassed inindustries like semiconductors. Practical trajectories for 5–10 TW of PVs alone by 2030 havebeen expertly compiled.1088 What about those careful analyses is implausible?1089
Finally, decisions and risks: Liebreich’s question “are you still sure you want to be shutting
down existing nuclear power stations at the same time?” is only about carbon, not also
dollars. If IEA’s claimed US$40–55/MWh cost for life-extension is correct; if reliability, safety,
and public confidence can be sustained; and if owners forego ~US$15–20/MWh of subsidies
demanded to cover claimed economic losses; then that nuclear solution will still cost several
times today’s best unsubsidized renewable prices, so it will abate severalfold less carbon per
dollar. If any of those hopes aren’t realized, that disadvantage will rise.
Sustaining existing reactors sounds easier, faster, and cheaper than replacing their output
with new efficiency and renewables. Yet the conditions owners are demanding for continued
1086 - Bloomberg New Energy Finance, “World Reaches 1,000 GW of Wind and Solar, Keeps Going”, 2 August 2018,see https://about.bnef.com/blog/world-reaches-1000gw-wind-solar-keeps-going/.
1087 - Felix Creutzig, Peter Agoston, et al., “The underestimated potential of solar energy to mitigate climate change”, Nature
Energy, 25 August 2017, see https://doi.org/10.1038/nenergy.2017.140; Christian Breyer, Dmitrii Bogdanov, et al., “On the Role ofSolar Photovoltaics in Global Energy Transition Scenarios”, Conference Paper, 32nd EU PVSEC (Munich), June 2016, see https://www.researchgate.net/publication/304350788_On_the_Role_of_Solar_Photovoltaics_in_Global_Energy_Transition_Scenarios,
summarized at http://www.neocarbonenergy.fi/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/13_Breyer.pdf.
1088 - Nancy M. Haegel, Robert Margolis, et al., “Terawatt-scale photovoltaics: Trajectories and challenges”, Science, Volume 356,
14 April 2017, see https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aal1288.
1089 - Historic learning curves are proving overly conservative; e.g. Rocky Mountain Institute’s and its industry partners’ threesuccessive halvings of unsubsidized PV system cost (now at ~US$20–25/MWh for streamlined community-scale groundmountinstallations entering the market) suggest continuing radical system-cost drops not yet in market prices. This and other nested
positive feedback loops could greatly speed the energy transition: see M. Abramczyk et al., “Positive Disruption: Limiting Global
Temperature Rise to Well Below 2 C˚”, Rocky Mountain Institute, 2017, see https://rmi.org/insight/positive_disruption_limiting_global_temperature_rise/; and Amory B. Lovins, “Additional sensitive intervention points in the post-carbon transition”, in submission
as of August 2019.

| 255

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

operation aren’t just for billions of dollars a year in new subsidies; they also impose heavy costs
and constraints on the fast, widespread, job-rich, and popular renewable solutions. Nuclear
power’s relationship with modern renewables and efficiency is rhetorically complementary
but in practice zero-sum or worse. How can slowing and blocking the cheapest and fastest
solutions—confining them to smaller markets and putting them at an artificial pricedisadvantage—yield better climate outcomes? Why should a particular low-carbon solution,
unable to compete after half a century, be awarded walled-garden markets and new subsidies
unavailable to other low-carbon solutions? How does this fit IEA’s correct call for policy to betechnology‑neutral?
BNEF’s 2019 annual analysis of global electricity 1090 concluded that the global power sector
remains on track to meet the basic 2˚C Paris Agreement goal (though not yet the safer 1.5˚Caspirational goal). But though the report “is fundamentally policy-agnostic,… it does assume
that markets operate rationally and fairly to allow lowest-cost providers to win,” said BNEF’s
spokesperson. Nuclear power’s advocates have the opposite goal—to replace the market
processes that reject their business with political choices their lobbying power can shape.
Mandating nuclear choices that the market has rejected also cripples the market-based decisionframeworks that underpin the modern energy transformation BNEF so effectively tracks. How
can that anti-market U-turn speed our urgent journey beyond fossil fuels?

CONCLUSION ON CLIMATE CHANGE
AND NUCLEAR POWER
Stabilizing the climate needs solutions that are “granular, modular, mass-producible,
fungible, quickly installable by diverse actors with little institutional preparation, and—mostimportantly—propelled by the powerful feedback of increasing returns and learning-bydoing.”1091 That describes energy efficiency and modern renewables but not nuclear power.
Stabilizing the climate is urgent, but nuclear power is slow. It meets no technical or operational
need that these low-carbon competitors cannot meet better, cheaper, and faster. Evensustaining economically distressed reactors saves less carbon per dollar and per year than
reinvesting its avoidable operating cost (let alone its avoidable new subsidies) into cheaper
efficiency and renewables. Whatever the rationales for continuing and expanding nuclear
power, for climate protection it has become counterproductive, and the new subsidies anddecision rules its owners demand would dramatically slow this decade’s encouraging progress
toward cheaper, faster options, more climate-effective solutions.

1090 - See BNEF “New Energy Outlook 2019”, 18 June 2019,see https://about.bnef.com/new-energy-outlook.
1091 - Amory B. Lovins, “Additional sensitive intervention points in the post-carbon transition”, in submission as of August 2019.

| 256

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 8 | 257

ANNEXESTABLE OF ANNEXESANNEX 1 | OVERVIEW BY REGION AND COUNTRY

258

ANNEX 2 | STATUS OF CHINESE NUCLEAR FLEET302

ANNEX 3 | STATUS OF JAPANESE NUCLEAR FLEET304

ANNEX 4 | ABOUT THE AUTHORS

306

ANNEX 5 | ABBREVIATIONS310

ANNEX 6 | STATUS OF NUCLEAR POWER IN THE WORLD

318

ANNEX 7 | NUCLEAR REACTORS IN THE WORLD“UNDER CONSTRUCTION”

319

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 258

ANNEX 1 OVERVIEW BY
REGION AND COUNTRY
These “quick view”
indicators will be usedin the country sections
throughout the report.

This annex provides an overview of nuclear energy worldwide by region and country that is notcovered as Focus Country in the main text (Belgium, China, France, Finland, Germany, Japan,
South Korea, Taiwan, U.K. and U.S.).
Unless otherwise noted, data on the numbers of reactors operating and under construction
and their capacity (as of mid-2019) and nuclear’s share in electricity generation are from theInternational Atomic Energy Agency’s Power Reactor Information System (PRIS) online
database.1092 Historical maximum figures indicate the year that the nuclear share in the power
generation of a given country was the highest since 1986, the year of the Chernobyl disaster.
Unless otherwise noted, the load factor figures are from Nuclear Engineering International(NEI).1093

AFRICASouth Africa
South Africa operates two French (Framatome) 900 MW reactors. They are both located at theKoeberg site, north of Cape Town, and generated 10.5 TWh in 2018, providing 4.7 percent of thecountry’s electricity, a significant fall from 15.1 TWh the previous year, providing 6.7 percent ofelectricity (the historical maximum was 7.4 percent in 1989).
The Koeberg plant is the only nuclear power station on the African continent.
The Koeberg reactors are increasingly struggling with ageing issues, having started up in 1984
and 1985 respectively. The reactors have been given permission to operate for 40 years andare undertaking a series of replacement and upgrading work, during routine outages. The
decision to replace all six steam generators of the two units was taken in 2010. This is reflectedin their load factor for 2018, which dropped from averaging 92.7 percent in 2017 for the tworeactors to 65 percent, below their lifetime average of 72 percent. The plant has been operating
1092 IAEA-PRIS, “Nuclear Share of Electricity Generation in 2018”, see https://pris.iaea.org/PRIS/WorldStatistics/
NuclearShareofElectricityGeneration.aspx, accessed July 2019. In this table, the nuclear electricity supplied is the sum of monthly

electricity production of individual reactor units (net). The share of nuclear in electricity generation is provided by the countries,
and the basis can differ from the electricity production provided by PRIS, according to statistical method used in each country,
and can be based on gross or net production.
1093 NEI, “Load factors to end December 2018”, June 2019, Caroline Peachey, personal communication, email dated 10 June 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

at low temperatures to reduce the pace of corrosion in the steam generator tubes. Replacement
work is still to begin in 2019 after AREVA was awarded the contract in 20141094 and a lengthy
legal battle with competitor Westinghouse. In 2018, the Parliament began investigations
into the actions of several Eskom officials relating to a number of issues, including the steam
generator contracts. The Parliament committee report concluded that the former chairmen
and executives of Eskom “reasonably ought to have known or suspected” that their failure toreport the flouting of governance rules relating to some contracts, including those relating to
the steam generator replacement “may constitute criminal conduct”.1095
The state-owned South African utility and Koeberg operator Eskom had considered acquiring
additional large Pressurized Water Reactors (PWRs) and had made plans to build 20 GW ofgenerating capacity by 2025. However, in November 2008, Eskom scrapped an internationaltender because the government was unwilling to give the loan guarantees demandedby potential financiers, and credit-rating agencies threatened downgrades. In 2011, theDepartment of Energy (DOE) published an Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) for future power
generation investments that contained a 9.6 GW target, or six nuclear units, by 2030. Startup
would have been one unit every 18 months beginning in 2022.1096 The total price of the project
was estimated to be in the range of US$37–100 billion.1097
In April 2017, the Western Cape division of South Africa’s High Court upheld two NGOs, theSouthern African Faith Communities Environment Institute (SAFCEI) and Earthlife Africa,in their cases against two Government actions: a December 2015 decision to proceed with theprocurement of 9.6 GW of new nuclear capacity, and the nuclear co-operation agreementsthat the government had signed with Russia, South Korea and the United States, annulled
by a South African court in 2017.1098 The court concluded that the lack of public consultationon the decisions “rendered its decision procedurally unfair” and breached its statute.1099 In
May 2017, the Government announced that it would not appeal the verdict. The 2018 Goldman
environmental prize was awarded to grassroots activists Makoma Lekalakala and Liz McDaid
for the successful legal challenge in this case.1100
In parallel to these developments, the South African government has been reviewing the
expected demand and need for different energy sources1101. The November‑2013 update of IRP
for electricity generation investments concluded that “the nuclear decision can possibly be1094 - NEI, “AREVA to replace steam generators at Koeberg”, 19 August 2014, see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsareva-toreplace-steam-generators-at-koeberg-4346550/, accessed 1 May 2018.
1095 - Renee Bonorchis, Ana Monteiro, “Three former Eskom chairmen to be criminally probed”, Bloomberg, 28 November 2018,see https://www.biznews.com/briefs/2018/11/28/eskom-chairmen-criminal-probe, accessed 23 April 2019.
1096 - Department of Energy, “Revised strategic plan, 2011/12-2015/16”, Republic of South Africa, 2012,see http://www.energy.gov.za/files/aboutus/DoE_RevisedStrategicPlan_2011_12-2015_16%20.pdf, accessed 1 May 2018.
1097 - NEI, “Eskom plans RFP for new reactors by mid-year”, 15 March 2017, see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newseskom-plansrfp-for-new-reactors-by-mid-year-5761595/, accessed 1 May 2018.
1098 - BBC, “South Africa’s nuclear deals ‘unlawful’”, 26 April 2017, see https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-39717401, accessed
27 April 2019.
1099 - Phil Chaffee, “Legal, High Court Upends South African Newbuild Plans”, NIW, 28 April 2017.
1100 - Jonathan Watts, “Goldman prize awarded to South African women who stopped an international nuclear deal”, The Guardian,
23 April 2018, see http://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/apr/23/goldman-prize-awarded-to-south-african-women-who-stopped-aninternational-nuclear-deal, accessed 1 May 2018.
1101 - Amory B. Lovins, Anton Eberhard, “South Africa’s Electricity Choice”, Occasional Paper Theories, Management Programme in
Infrastructure Reform & Regulation, Graduate School of Business, University of Cape Town, January 2018, see http://www.gsb.uct.
ac.za/files/South_Africas_Electricity_Choice_Final_2_Jan_2018.pdf, accessed| 259

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 delayed”.1102 In October 2016, the DOE began consultations on a revision of the IRP, in which
it is suggested that commissioning of new nuclear would, under their base-case scenario, be
only in 2037, and only 1,359 MWe, equivalent to one reactor. However, the plan then assumes
a massive commissioning program with 20 GW of new nuclear capacity by 2050, but only
because the contribution of solar and wind had been capped arbitrarily, meaning that nuclear
had to make up the generation gap. The nuclear program was forced into every draft of the IRP
even though it was not cost‑competitive.
In January 2018, President Cyril Ramaphosa said in Davos that “we have no money to go for
major nuclear plant building.”1103 Even the chief financial officer of Eskom stated: “I can’t go
and commit to additional expenditure around a nuclear program.”1104 In August 2018, theGovernment published its draft IRP 20181105, in which new nuclear is absent in the period up to2030.1106

THE AMERICAS
Argentina
Argentina has three nuclear reactors. In 2018 the operating units provided 6.5 TWh or
4.7 percent of the country’s electricity (down from a maximum of 19.8 percent in 1990).
The operating nuclear plants were supplied by foreign reactor builders: Atucha‑1, whichstarted operation in 1974, was supplied by Siemens, and the CANDU (CANadian Deuterium
Uranium) type reactor at Embalse was supplied by the Canadian Atomic Energy of Canada
Limited (AECL) and started operating in 1983. In April 2018, the regulatory authority gave alicense to enable Atucha‑1 to continue to operate until 2024, which if completed would thus
allow for a 50‑year operating life.1107
The Embalse plant was shut down at the end of 2015 for major overhaul, including the
replacement of hundreds of pressure tubes, to enable it to operate for up to 30 more years.
Reportedly, contracts worth US$444 million were signed in August 2011 with the bulk of
the work done during a 20‑month shutdown starting in November 2013.1108 According to theWorld Nuclear Association (WNA), the reactor was shut down in January 2016 and at the time1102 - Department of Energy, “Integrated Resource Plan for Electricity (IRP) 2010-2030—Update Report 2013”, Republic ofSouth Africa, see http://www.doe-irp.co.za/content/IRP2010_updatea.pdf, accessed 1 May 2018.
1103 - Reuters, “South Africa has no money for major nuclear expansion, Ramaphosa says”, 25 January 2018,see https://af.reuters.com/article/commoditiesNews/idAFL8N1PK6S9, accessed 1 May 2018.
1104 - NIW, “Weekly Roundup”, 2 February 2018.
1105 - Despite there being half a dozen versions of the IRP, only one, the revision of 2011 was ‘promulgated’ so all the other versions
including the August 2018 version have no policy status.
1106 - NEI, “South Africa cancels nuclear expansion plans”, 30 August 2018,see https://www.neimagazine.com/news/newssouth-africa-cancels-nuclear-expansion-plans-6728356/, accessed 23 April 2019.
1107 - WNN, “Atucha 1 operating licence renewed”, 16 April 2018,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/RS-Atucha-1-operating-licence-renewed-1604184.html, accessed 7 May 2018.
1108 - WNN, “Embalse refurbishment contracts signed”, 25 August 2011, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/C-Embalse_
refurbishment_contracts_signed-2508114.html, accessed 7 May 2018.

| 260

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 was expected to come back online in the second half of 2018.1109 The reactor was eventuallyrestarted on 4 January 2019 and is now expected to operate for another 30 years.1110 However, it
is unclear when electricity production resumed.
Atucha-2 was ordered in 1979 and was listed as “under construction” in 1981. Construction wason and off for the next decades, but finally grid connection was announced on 27 June 2014.
However, it took until 19 February 2015 for the unit to reach full capacity1111 and until
26 May 2016 to enter commercial operation.1112
For the past decade discussions have been held on the construction of a fourth reactor. In
February 2015, Argentina and China ratified an agreement to build an 800 MW CANDU‑typereactor at the Atucha site, when Atucha‑3 was expected to cost US$5.8 billion.1113
A framework agreement was also signed in 2015 between the two companies for theconstruction of a Hualong One reactor, China’s new, and as yet unoperated, Generation‑III
design, without a site being specified.1114 In May 2017, a co-operation agreement was signed
between Argentina and China, whereby China would help build and mainly finance theconstruction of the two reactors, with the CANDU‑6 starting construction in 2018 and the
Hualong reactor in 2020.1115 However, the site for the Hualong reactor has not been agreed on,as the Governor of Rio Negro—the Government’s preferred location—said that the reactor
would not be located in his province, citing a lack of social acceptance for the project.1116 Despite
this, the Government insisted in October 2017 that construction on both projects would begin
in the 2nd half of 2018.1117 The total cost of the Hualong and Atucha‑3 projects were expected to
be US$12.5 billion, financed with a 20‑year loan from China at an interest rate of 4.5 percent.1118
In May 2018, the government announced that it was suspending talks with China regarding
the construction of both reactors for at least four years.1119 Then, in the run up to the G‑20
summit in Buenos Aires at the end of 2018, there was more optimism that the project could be
revised, due to a better financial offer from the Chinese and the conclusion of a wider bailout
deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). During 2019, discussions were said to be
still ongoing and centered around interest rates, although this was said to be just one of many
1109 - WNA, “Nuclear Power in Argentina—Argentinian Nuclear Energy”,
see http://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/country-profiles/countries-a-f/argentina.aspx, accessed 7 May 2018.
1110 - NEI, “Argentine’s Embalse nuclear plant restarts following life extension work”, 11 January 2019, see https://www.neimagazine.
com/news/newsargentines-embalse-nuclear-plant-restarts-following-life-extension-work-6932719/, accessed 23 April 2019.
1111 - WNN, “Atucha 2 reaches 100% rated power”, 19 February 2015,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Atucha-2-reaches-100-percent-rated-power-19021502.html, accessed 7 May 2018.
1112 - WNN, “Atucha 2 receives full operating licence”, 31 May 2016,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/RS-Atucha-2-receives-full-operating-licence-3105165.html, accessed 7 May 2018.
1113 - WNN, “Argentina and China sign contract for two reactors”, 18 May 2017,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Argentina-and-China-sign-contract-for-two-reactors-1805175.html, accessed 21 March 2018.
1114 - Phil Chaffee, Jason Fargo, “Moving closer to Atucha-3 and HPR1000 Newbuilds”, NIW.
1115 - CNNC, “CNNC to build heavy water reactor and HPR 1000 units in Argentina”, 19 May 2017,see http://en.cnnc.com.cn/2017-05/19/c_77725.htm, accessed 7 May 2018.
1116 - Phil Chaffee, “Argentina”, NIW, 29 September 2017.
1117 - Sylvia Westall, “Argentina to start building two new nuclear reactors in 2018”, Reuters, 31 October 2017,see https://www.reuters.com/article/argentina-nuclearpower/argentina-to-start-building-two-new-nuclear-reactors-in-2018idUSL8N1N67EG, accessed 7 May 2018.
1118 - Phil Chaffee, “Argentina”, NIW, 29 September 2017.
1119 - Phil Chaffee, “The Fallout From Argentina’s Newbuild Retreat”, NIW, 25 May 2018.

| 261

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

issues to be resolved.1120 According to a January 2019 note by the French Economy and Finance
Ministry, the Hualong One project with a 750 MW reactor could be entirely financed by China
and started up by 2027 or 2028.1121 In June 2019 the Argentine government expressed ongoingsupport for the project following official meetings with the Chinese, with Argentina’s cabinet
chief Marcos Pena saying “there is an intention to move forward.”1122
After repeated delays, construction of a prototype 27 MWe Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR),
the domestically designed CAREM25 (Central Argentina de Elementos Modulares—apressurized-water Small Modular Reactor) began near the Atucha site in February 2014, withstartup initially planned for 2018. The reactor was said to cost US$446 million1123 . It is now
scheduled to begin operating in 2022.1124 The costs have risen to an estimated US$700 million
or about US$26,000 per installed kWe.1125

BrazilBrazil operates two nuclear reactors that provided the country with 14.8 TWh or 2.7 percent
of its electricity in 2018, just as in 2017 and well below the maximum of 4.3 percent in 2001.
Construction of a third reactor was suspended in late 2015.
The first contract for the construction of a nuclear power plant, Angra-1, was awarded toWestinghouse in 1970. The reactor eventually went critical in 1981. Angra‑2 was completed
and was finally connected to the grid in July 2000, 24 years after construction started.
Preparatory work for the construction of Angra-3 started in 1984 but was abandoned in June
1991. Then, in May 2010, Brazil’s Nuclear Energy Commission issued a construction license
and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) noted that a “new” construction started
on 1 June 2010. In early 2011, the Brazilian national development bank (BNDES) approved a
6.1 billion‑real‑(US$3.6‑billion)‑loan for work on the project.1126 Reportedly, in November 2013,
Eletrobras Eletronuclear signed a €1.25 billion (US$1.425 billion) contract with French builder
AREVA for the completion of the plant.1127 Commissioning was previously planned for July 20161120 - NIW, “Argentina—Briefs”, 5 April 2019.
1121 - Direction générale du Trésor, “Le secteur nucléaire en Argentine”, French Ministry for the Economy and Finance,
28 January 2019, see https://www.tresor.economie.gouv.fr/Articles/2019/01/28/le-secteur-nucleaire-en-argentine, accessed 16 May 2019.
1122 - Cassandra Garrison, Hugh Bronstein “Argentine official, in China, talks nuclear deal and soymeal”, Reuters, 25 June 2019,see https://www.theguardian.pe.ca/business/argentine-official-in-china-talks-nuclear-deal-and-soymeal-326387/, accessed 9 July 2019.
1123 - WNN, “Construction of CAREM underway”, 10 February 2014,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Construction-of-CAREM-underway-1002144.html, accessed 7 May 2018.
1124 - Agencia TSS, “CAREM: Reactor en alta tensión”, 21 February 2019,see http://www.unsam.edu.ar/tss/carem-reactor-en-alta-tension/, accessed 16 May 2019.
1125 - Jim Green, “Small and Medium Nuclear Reactors (SMRs) – cost estimates, and what they cost to build”, Nuclear Monitor,
Nuclear News Net, 7 March 2019, see https://nuclear-news.net/2019/03/25/small-and-medium-nuclear-reactors-smrs-cost-estimatesand-what-they-cost-to-build/#more-147114, accessed 12 May 2019.
1126 - However, it is surprising to note that AREVA’s 400-page Reference Document 2012 does not even contain the word “Angra”;
see AREVA, “2012—Reference Document”, 2013, see http://www.sa.areva.com/mediatheque/liblocal/docs/groupe/Documentreference/2012/DDR_AREVA_2012_EN.pdf, accessed 7 May 2018.
1127 - WNN, “Areva contracted to complete Angra 3”, 8 November 2013,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/C-Areva-contracted-to-complete-Angra-3-081134.html, accessed 7 May 2018.

| 262

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

but was delayed to May 2018 in 20151128 and then to May 2019.1129 However, construction was
halted in the fall of 2015, as a consequence of a huge corruption scandal.1130, 1131 The scandal
has engulfed even the former Brazilian President Michel Temer, who was arrested, along withothers, in March 2019, for allegedly diverting 1.8 billion reais ($475 million) from Eletronuclear’s
Angra‑3 new-build project.1132
In January 2017, the Brazilian Official Journal registered Eletronuclear’s decision to annul thebidding process and the contracts for the electromechanical assembly of Angra‑3.1133 CNNC,
EDF, Rosatom and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’ joint venture Atmea SAS are now bidding toconstruct and more importantly finance the project.1134 The Government was hoping to havea new business plan completed in mid‑2019 with the aim of completion by 2025, although the
key issue remains construction cost and the need to significantly raise power prices to pay forit.1135 The Government in early 2019 said that it was committed to the development of nuclear
power, including the completion of Angra-3, which would depend on a complex process ofdecisions but that the “challenges ahead were enormous”.1136 The government has previously
said it wanted to see Angra‑3 completed by 2026.1137 On 21 May 2019, the Government issued astatement qualifying Angra‑3 for the public investment plan and announced the creation of aninterministerial committee, coordinated by the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME), whichshould develop the “legal and operational model of the enterprise”.1138

CanadaCanada has 19 CANDU reactors, one of which is in Long-Term Outage (LTO). In 2018 they
produced 94.5 TWh or 14.87 percent of Canada’s total electricity. The nuclear share remained
practically stable (+0.3 percent). Eighteen out of the 19 nuclear reactors are located in theprovince of Ontario, where nuclear power constituted 35 percent of installed capacity and1128 - NIW, “Briefs—Brazil”, 9 January 2015.
1129 - NIW, “Newbuild: Sobriety, Secrecy and Reluctance”, 24 June 2016.
1130 - Jeb Blount, “Brazil police arrest 19 in Eletrobras nuke-plant bribe probe”, Reuters, 6 July 2016, see https://www.reuters.com/
article/us-brazil-corruption/brazil-police-arrests-nine-over-corruption-at-nuclear-plant-idUSKCN0ZM13N, accessed 7 May 2018.
1131 - Reese Ewing, “Brazil Eletronuclear CEO gets 43-year sentence for corruption -paper”, Reuters, 4 August 2016,see https://www.reuters.com/article/brazil-corruption-eletrobras/brazil-eletronuclear-ceo-gets-43-year-sentence-for-corruptionpaper-idUSL1N1AL16E, accessed 7 May 2018.
1132 - NIW, “Brazil: ‘Radioactivity’ Probe Nets Ex-President; Shoot-Out Near Angra”, 22 March 2019.
1133 - NEI, “Contracts for work at Brazil’s Angra 3 declared void”, 6 February 2017,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newscontracts-for-work-at-brazils-angra-3-declared-void-5732236, accessed 7 May 2018.
1134 - NIW, “Brazil”, 15 September 2017.
1135 - Luciano Costa, Rodrigo Viga Gaier, “Brazil struggles to find investors in on-again, off-again nuclear project”, Reuters,
12 January 2018, see https://af.reuters.com/article/commoditiesNews/idAFL4N1P74IW, accessed 7 May 2018.
1136 - WNN, “Brazilian government committed to nuclear, says energy minister”, 5 April 2019,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Brazilian-government-committed-to-nuclear-minister, accessed 9 April 2019.
1137 - NIW, “Briefs - Brazil”, 1 March 2019.
1138 - Eletrobras Eletronuclear, “Resolução oficializa inclusão de Angra 3 no PPI”, Press Release, 24 May 2019,see http://www.eletronuclear.gov.br/Imprensa-e-Midias/Paginas/Resolu%C3%A7%C3%A3o-oficializa-inclus%C3%A3o-de-Angra-3-noPPI.aspx, accessed 29 May 2019.

| 263

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

contributed 61 percent of the electricity produced in 2018.1139 The Darlington‑2 reactor enteredlong‑term refurbishment outage in October 2016.1140
Most of Canada’s electricity, however, comes from renewable sources—in 2018, 66 percent of
the total electricity generated.1141 This is dominated by hydro power, which contributed over
59 percent of the total; of the remaining, wind contributed 4.9 percent, biomass 2.0 percent, andsolar 0.5 percent. According to IRENA, in the past decade, between 2009 and 2018, Canada’s
total installed renewable energy capacity has grown from 79.6 GW to 99 GW, hydropower from74.7 GW to 80.7 GW, wind from 3.3 GW to 12.8 GW, and solar from 95 MW to 3.1 GW.1142
The Canadian National Energy Board (NEB) projects a declining trend for nuclear power; in
its 2018 “energy future” report, the reference case scenario envisions nuclear power capacity
declining from 9.8 percent of total installed capacity in 2016 to 6.4 percent by 2040; thefraction of all electricity generated is expected to come down to around 12.3 percent in 2040.1143
In contrast, wind energy is projected to double in capacity and share of electricity generation,and solar energy is projected to nearly triple in the reference scenario.
The decline of nuclear power could be more rapid than NEB’s projections. The reason that
the NEB projects this continued electricity share for nuclear power is that some of the older
reactors are being refurbished in order to keep them operational. However, refurbishment
is contingent on a number of factors. In the case of the Bruce nuclear plant, the contract
includes “two types of off-ramps”; one allows the Independent Electricity System Operator“the option to terminate refurbishments if the estimates provided by Bruce Power prior toeach refurbishment exceed cost or duration thresholds” and the other allows it “to terminate
all remaining refurbishments due to reduced electricity demand or the emergence of morecost-effective electricity generation resources”.1144 Given declining renewable costs, the latter
contingency might well come to pass.
Ontario Power Generation (OPG) is refurbishing Unit 2 of the Darlington nuclear power plant.
According to OPG, this has continued to be on time and on budget throughout the first quarterof 2019, with “more than 82 percent” of the work complete.1145
Canadian government agencies continue to promote small modular reactors. A spokeswomanfrom Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), for example, described Small Modular
Reactors (SMRs) as a “promising potential area of energy innovation that could provide
electricity, both on- and off-grid” that supports the “transition to low-carbon energy

1139 - IESO, “Supply Overview”, Independent Electricity System Operator, 11 June 2019,see http://www.ieso.ca/Power-Data/Supply-Overview/Transmission-Connected-Generation, accessed 11 June 2019.
1140 - OPG, “Darlington Refurbishment”, Undated,
see https://www.opg.com/strengthening-the-economy/our-projects/darlington-refurbishment/, accessed 14 June 2019.
1141 - BP, “Statistical Review of World Energy”, June 2019, op. cit.
1142 - IRENA, “Renewable Capacity Statistics 2019”, see https://www.irena.org/-/media/Files/IRENA/Agency/Publication/2019/Mar/
IRENA_RE_Capacity_Statistics_2019.pdf, accessed 6 June 2019.
1143 - NEB, “Canada’s Energy Future 2018—An Energy Market Assessment—Energy Supply and Demand Projections to 2040”, 2018,see http://www.neb.gc.ca/nrg/ntgrtd/ftr/2018/2018nrgftr-eng.pdf, accessed 27 May 2019.
1144 - FAO, “An Assessment of the Financial Risks of the Nuclear Refurbishment Plan”, Financial Accountability Office of Ontario,
2017.
1145 - OPG, “Darlington Refurbishment performance update - Q1 2019”, May 2019,see https://www.opg.com/news/darlington-refurbishment-performance-update-q1-2019/, accessed 6 June 2019.

| 264

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 solutions”.1146 In November 2018, a group of Canadian provincial governments, territorial
governments, and power utilities put out the Canadian Small Modular Reactor Roadmap, adocument seeking to advance SMRs in Canada.1147 Canada’s promotion of SMRs is discussed in
more detail in the Small Modular Reactor Chapter.

MexicoIn Mexico, two General Electric (GE) reactors operate at the Laguna Verde power plant, locatedin Alto Lucero, Veracruz. The first unit was connected to the grid in 1989 and the second unit
in 1994. In 2018, nuclear power generation increased by 25 percent to a new maximum of
13.2 TWh, providing 5.3 percent of the country’s electricity, compared to 6 percent in 2017.
The two reactors achieved an average load factor of 96.1 percent in 2018—the highest of any
country that year—up from 77.1 percent in 2017. The power plant is owned and operated by thestate utility Federal Electricity Commission (Comisión Federal de Electricidad—CFE).
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) completed a long-term operational safety
review of the Laguna Verde nuclear power plant in March 2019. The IAEA team has maderecommendations as part of the process to extend the operating lives of the reactors, as the
CFE has requested that the units be granted a 30‑year life extension to enable each unit tooperate for a total of 60 years.1148
In 2013 the Mexican Congress began restructuring the power sector, to move away from a
vertically integrated utility to enable private actors to enter the sector, for private financing
for the transmission and distribution networks and eventually to enable retail competition.
The role of CFE was also modified as it was unbundled into different supply, distribution
and retail arms, which included a separate entity to operate Laguna Verde. According to the
Wilson Centre, “The reform allows all participants in the newly created power market tocompete under equal conditions to sell generation supply contracts in a competitive bidding
process and gives open access to the grid. The sole exception to this new open market is nuclear
power generation, which remains controlled by CFE”.1149
In May 2018, President Trump transmitted to Congress a formal nuclear co-operationagreement (a “123 agreement”) needed before any nuclear material or equipment export fromthe U.S. can take place. Congress had 90 days to review to approve or reject the proposal,1150

1146 - Zi-Ann Lum, “Canada Risks ‘Climate Change Detour’ If New Nuclear Reactors Get Built: Advocacy Group”, Huffington
Post Canada, 6 November 2018, see https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2018/11/06/canada-small-modular-nuclear-reactorsclimate_a_23581936/, accessed 11 June 2019.
1147 - Canadian SMR Roadmap Steering Committee, “A Call to Action: A Canadian Roadmap for Small Modular Reactors”,
November 2018, see https://smrroadmap.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/SMRroadmap_EN_nov6_Web-1.pdf, accessed 14 June 2019.
1148 - NEI, “IAEA reviews long term operation of Mexico’s Laguna Verde”, 25 March 2019, see https://www.neimagazine.com/news/
newsiaea-reviews-long-term-operation-of-mexicos-laguna-verde-7057990/, accessed 23 April 2019.
1149 - Duncan Wood, “Mexico’s New Energy Reform”, Mexico Institute, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars,
October 2018, see https://www.wilsoncenter.org/sites/default/files/mexicos_new_energy_reform.pdf, accessed 23 April 2019.
1150 - Arms Control Association, “The U.S. Atomic Energy Act Section 123 At a Glance”, Fact Sheets & Briefs, Updated April 2019,see https://www.armscontrol.org/factsheets/AEASection123, accessed 12 May 2019.

| 265

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

but it entered into force in September 2018. The agreement also enabled broader nuclear cooperation, including for greater support for Laguna Verde.1151

United States
See Focus Countries – United State Focus.

ASIA AND MIDDLE EAST
China
See Focus Countries – China Focus.

India
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) lists India as operating 22 nuclear powerreactors, with a total net generating capacity of 6.2 GW. However, according to WNISR criteria,
the Rajasthan‑1 reactor—in the Long-Term Outage (LTO) category as it has not generated
power since 2005—was moved to “closed” in WNISR2018, as its final closure had been officiallyannounced.1152 The two units of the Kakrapar power plant were in the LTO category last year
but have since been brought back to operational status.1153 The operating nuclear power plants
generated 35.4 TWh in 2018, marginally more than the 34.9 TWh in 2017; the share of nuclear
power has declined from 3.4 percent in 2016 to 3.2 percent in 2017, to 3.1 percent in 2018.
India’s main electricity management organization, the Central Electricity Authority, reportsthat for the period from April 2018 to March 2019, nuclear power generated 37.7 TWh, slightly
below the 38.3 TWh from April 2017 to March 2018.1154 In comparison, during the period
from April 2018 to March 2019, renewable energy sources, other than large hydro, together
generated 126.8 TWh.1155 That is nearly 25 percent more than the corresponding contribution
from renewables from April 2017 to March 2018 or 3.4 times the amount provided by nuclear
power plants—and that ratio is up from 2.7 just one year earlier.
What was new about the year to March 2019 is that with 39.3 TWh, for the first time, solar
energy fed more electricity to the grid than nuclear energy. Wind energy, which has exceeded
1151 - NPAC, “FY 2018 – Impact Report”, NNSA, March 2019,see https://www.energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2019/03/f60/NPAC%202018%20impact%20report.pdf, accessed 9 June 2019.
1152 - Deccan Herald, “End of the road for RAPS 1”, 6 September 2014,see http://www.deccanherald.com/content/429550/end-road-raps-1.html, accessed 16 June 2016
1153 - WNN, “Kakrapar unit restarts after modernisation”, 21 May 2019, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Kakraparrestarts-after-modernisation, accessed 21 May 2019; and NPCIL, “KAPS-1 connected to the grid ahead of schedule”, Nuclear Power
Corporation of India Ltd, Press Release, 24 May 2019, see https://www.npcil.nic.in/writereaddata/Orders/201905240159202891124News_24052019_01.pdf, accessed 25 May 2019; and NPCIL, “KAPS-2 poised for startup”, Press Release, 28 August 2018,see http://www.npcil.nic.in/writereaddata/Orders/201808280201113192041news_28aug2018_01.pdf, accessed 29 August 2018.
1154 - CEA, “Executive Summary on Power Sector”, Central Electricity Authority, Ministry of Power, Government of India,
March 2019, see http://www.cea.nic.in/monthlyexesummary.html, accessed 22 June 2019.
1155 - CEA, “Executive Summary on Power Sector”, Central Electricity Authority, Ministry of Power, Government of India, April 2019,see http://www.cea.nic.in/monthlyexesummary.html, accessed 22 June 2019.

| 266

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 267

nuclear energy for many years now, contributed 62 TWh. These differences between renewables
and nuclear will increase in the coming years, because of the rapid growth of solar and windcapacity, and stagnation in the nuclear sector.

“

for the first time, solar energy fed more electricity
to the grid than nuclear energy”

No new reactor was connected to the grid in the past year. Seven reactors with a combined
net capacity of 4.8 GW remain under construction. These include two Russian VVER-1000s
being constructed at the Kudankulam site since October 2017, two Pressurized Heavy Water
Reactors each at Kakrapar (since November 2010) and at Rajasthan (since September 2011),
and a Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) whose construction started in October 2004. All
projects started before 2017 are delayed. Construction start of the two Kudankulam reactors
was delayed, but the expected commercial operation officially remains 2023.1156
The PFBR was supposed to be completed by 2010 but its start date has been repeatedly
postponed. The last official update comes from a government statement presented in the
Indian Parliament in February 2019 that says that the PFBR is in an advanced “stage of
integrated commissioning and it is expected to approach first criticality by the year 2020”.1157
However, criticality does not mean that the reactor will be connected to the grid. That is now
projected to happen in October 2021, according to India’s Ministry of Statistics and Programme
Implementation Infrastructure and Project Monitoring Division. Early 2018, the official datefor “expected completion” of the PFBR was still within the year.1158 The projected cost of the
PFBR has also risen from the initially anticipated Rs. 34.9 billion to Rs. 56.7 billion and thento Rs. 68.4 billion.1159 Thus, the PFBR cost-estimate has practically doubled and the project iscurrently 11 years behind schedule.1160
Kakrapar-3 and -4 are now projected to cost Rs. 165.8 billion, up from Rs. 114.6 billion; thedates of commissioning have been revised from 2015 to 2020.1161 According to the Ministry of
Statistics and Programme Implementation Infrastructure and Project Monitoring Division, the1156 - NPCIL, “Status of Project under Construction - Kudankulam Atomic Power Project”, Undated,
see https://www.npcil.nic.in/content/831_1_KudankulamNuclearPowerProject.aspx, accessed 25 June 2019.
1157 - Department of Atomic Energy, “Starred Question No.59—Nuclear Power Reactors—Answer by The Minister of State for
Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions and Prime Minister’s Office (Dr. Jitendra Singh)”, Governmet of India, 6 February 2019,see http://dae.nic.in/writereaddata/lssq59.pdf, accessed 23 June 2019.
1158 - Department of Atomic Energy, “Unstarred Question No.4226—Issues Concerning Installation Of New NPPs—Answer by
The Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions and Prime Minister’s Office (Dr. Jitendra Singh)”, 21 March 2018,see http://dae.nic.in/writereaddata/parl/budget2018/lsus4226.pdf, accessed 15 May 2018.
1159 - Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, “Flash Report on Central Sector Projects (Rs. 150 crore and above)
March 2019”, Government of India, 2019, see http://www.cspm.gov.in/english/flr/Fr_mar_Report_2019.pdf, accessed 20 June 2019.
1160 - Currently, the conversion rate to US dollars is nearly Rs. 70 per US dollar. However, the PFBR costs are in mixed-year Rupees, so
directly converting it into other currencies using the currency conversion figure for any given year is misleading.
1161 - According to Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL), the original schedule dates for Commercial Operation wereJune and December 2015, respectively. As of July 2019, they are expected to be December 2019 and December 2020. See NPCIL,“Status of Project under Construction—Kakrapar Atomic Power Project”, n.d., see https://www.npcil.nic.in/content/301_1_
KakraparAtomicPowerProject.aspx, last accessed 24 June 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 other reactors under construction are also delayed1162 but have not had their projected budgets
revised.1163
The next Pressurized High Water Reactors (PHWRs) (2 x 700 MW) to be constructed will beat the Gorakhpur site in the northern state of Haryana. Excavation work for two reactor units
started in March 2018 and are said to be at “an advanced stage” with orders being “placed forlong delivery equipment”.1164 The government also has “accorded administrative approval andfinancial sanction” for constructing ten 700 MW PHWRs at various sites around the country
and two more VVER‑1000s at Kudankulam, but construction has not started anywhere.
The status of the reactors to be imported from the United States and France after the so-called
U.S.‑India nuclear deal is more tentative. In Parliament, the Government says that they havebeen “accorded ‘in principle’ approval…for setting up nuclear power plants in future”.1165 Thissuggests that construction is not imminent at any of these. The government’s projection for“installed nuclear power capacity” is “22,480 MW by 2031”, which would indicate that none ofthese imported reactors will be operational before 2031.
At Jaitapur, the site chosen to set up EPRs from France, the last official update was inDecember 2018 when French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian and India’s External
Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj announced that “both sides are working towards starting the
Jaitapur…project as soon as possible”.1166 This does not suggest any rapid progress.
The last major imported reactors operating in India are Kudankulam-1 and -2. But theirperformance has been poor and they have received much media criticism and concern among
even officials from the Nuclear Power Corporation of India. Kudankulam-1 had a load factorof 54 percent, and Kudankulam‑2 had a load factor of just 35.2 percent in 2018. The problems
have continued in 2019. Unit 1 had “not generated power in the entire month of March” andaccording to Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (Tangedco), the state’s
distribution company, “only one unit was functioning…at any given time last year”.1167 An
unnamed senior director of the Nuclear Power Corporation “with decades of experience indesigning and commissioning nuclear power reactors” reportedly said that Kudankulam‑1 “hasbeen facing problems since the day it was commissioned and had undergone many breakdowns
and closures. The unit 1 has been shut down for most of the time since its commissioning and1162 - According to NPCIL, the original scheduled dates for Commercial Operation for Rajasthan-7 & -8 were June andDecember 2016, respectively. As of June 2019, they are expected to be December 2020 and December 2021. NPCIL, “Statusof Project under Construction—Rajasthan Atomic Power Project”, Undated, see https://www.npcil.nic.in/content/300_1_
RajasthanAtomicPowerProject.aspx, accessed 24 June 2019.
1163 - Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, “Flash Report on Central Sector Projects (Rs. 150 crore and above)
March 2019”, Government of India, 2019, Op. cit.
1164 - Department of Atomic Energy, “Lok Sabha—Unstarred Question No.3565—Gorakhpur Atomic Power Plant - Answer by The
Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions and Prime Minister’s Office (Dr. Jitendra Singh)”, Government of India,
2 January 2019, see http://dae.nic.in/writereaddata/parl/winter2018/lsus3565.pdf, accessed 23 June 2019.
1165 - Department of Atomic Energy, “Lok Sabha—Unstarred Question No.1822—Gorakhpur Atomic Power Plant - Answer by The
Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions and Prime Minister’s Office (Dr. Jitendra Singh)”, Government of India,
13 February 2019, see http://dae.nic.in/writereaddata/lsusq1822.pdf, accessed 23 June 2019.
1166 - The Hindu, “France, India working on Jaitapur nuclear power project”, 15 December 2018, see https://www.thehindu.com/news/
national/france-india-working-on-jaitapur-nuclear-power-project/article25753453.ece, accessed 23 June 2019.
1167 - B. Sivakumar, “Mired in problems, two units of K-plant perform below par”, The Times of India, 13 May 2019,see https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/two-units-of-kudankulam-perform-below-par/articleshow/69312650.cms,
accessed 23 June 2019.

| 268

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

this is a matter of serious concern” while another reactor engineer was quoted as saying thatthe “frequent shut downs are causing apprehension”.1168
These frequent shutdowns were causing its generation to be so uncertain that Kudankulam
was being tarred with the brush of “intermittent” renewable sources of electricity. An officialfrom the Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (Tangedco) was quoted assaying “we are not able to prepare any schedule based on Kudankulam supply. It is as good as
not being there.”1169

Iran
Iran has a single operating nuclear power plant (Bushehr-1) which generated 2.1 percent(6.30 TWh) of Iran’s total electricity in 2018. The share of nuclear energy is almost identicalto the 2.2 percent share in 2017. Although excavation for the foundation of the second unit
at Bushehr started on 31 October 2017,1170 concrete has not been poured and the project is
not marked as under construction by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).1171
Nevertheless authorities continue to maintain that “Bushehr units 2 and 3 are to be completed
in 2024 and 2026, respectively”.1172
The bulk of Iran’s electricity comes from natural gas followed by oil. However, Iran has been
expanding its renewable capacity. In addition to hydropower with a capacity of 13 GW (2018),
Iran has been focused on wind power, whose capacity has grown from 92 MW in 2009 to
282 MW in 2018 in the last decade.1173 Likewise, solar energy capacity has gone from 1 MW in2013 to 286 MW in 2018. However, this may be slowing as a result of the sanctions imposedon Iran by the United States under President Donald Trump. One report from August 2018
recorded that solar projects amounting to 2,600 MW of capacity had been stalled because of
U.S. sanctions.1174

Pakistan
Pakistan operates five nuclear reactors with a combined capacity of 1.3 GW. In 2018, Pakistan’s
electricity production from nuclear energy was 9.3 TWh which represented 6.8 percent of thetotal electricity generated in the country. This contribution was higher than the corresponding
1168 - Kumar Chellappan, “Kudankulam nuclear plant breakdown raises safety concern”, The Pioneer, 6 June 2019,see https://www.dailypioneer.com/2019/india/kudankulam-nuclear-plant-breakdown-raises-safety-concern.html, accessed 23 June 2019.
1169 - Sivakumar, “Mired in Problems, Two Units of K-Plant Perform below Par”, Op. cit.
1170 - NIW, “Iran”, 3 November 2017.
1171 - However, Bushehr‑2 was listed as “under construction” by the IAEA for more than 10 years, before it disappeared from the list in
the late 1990s. It is still considered as “cancelled construction” (since 1978) by WNISR and will remain in this category until its official
construction restarts.
1172 - WNN, “Rosatom committed to Iranian plant project”, 9 May 2019,see http://world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Rosatom-committed-to-Iranian-plant-project, accessed 13 June 2019.
1173 - IRENA, “Renewable Capacity Statistics 2019”, March 2019, see https://www.irena.org/-/media/Files/IRENA/Agency/
Publication/2019/Mar/IRENA_RE_Capacity_Statistics_2019.pdf, accessed 3 April 2019.
1174 - Tsvetomira Tsanova, “US sanctions hit 2.6 GW of solar projects in Iran - report”, Renewables Now, 14 August 2018,see https://renewablesnow.com/news/us-sanctions-hit-26-gw-of-solar-projects-in-iran-report-623522/, accessed 13 June 2019.

| 269

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

figures of 8.1 TWh and 6.2 percent from 2017, almost entirely because the fourth unit at
Chashma was connected to the grid in July 2017 and thus operated for a full year in 2018 as
opposed to 2017.
The construction of two Hualong One reactors continued near Karachi, the most populous cityin Pakistan with over 16 million inhabitants. Construction of these started in 2015 and 2016
and these are “scheduled for commercial operation in 2021 and 2022, respectively”.1175 These
are being financed by loans from China, and in May 2019, Pakistan’s government stated thatit received US$628.4 million “for the construction of two ongoing nuclear power plants in thepast 10 months”.1176
Pakistan has been rapidly expanding its renewable energy capacity, in particular solar andwind, and has high ambitions to accelerate further. Over the past five years, solar energy
capacity increased by a factor of 15, from 101 MW in 2013 to 1.6 GW in 2018.1177 Wind energy
capacity has grown by a factor of 10 during the same period, from 106 MW to 1.2 GW. Some of
the financing for these projects comes from China and possibly Saudi Arabia.1178

South Korea
See Focus Countries – South Korea Focus.

TaiwanSee Focus Countries – Taiwan Focus.

EUROPEAN UNION (EU28)
About half of the European Union (EU28) member states have gone through three nuclear
construction waves (see Figure 54)—two small ones in the 1960s and the 1970s and a larger
one in the 1980s (mainly in France).
The region has not had any significant nuclear building activity since the 1990s. There
were no construction starts in Western Europe since 1991, prior to Olkiluoto‑3 (2005) andFlamanville‑3 (2007), and only one after with the first unit of Hinkley Point C (2018). Only fivereactors were connected to the EU-grid over the past 20 years, four in Eastern Europe (twoin the Czech Republic and one each in Romania and Slovakia) and one in France, none since
Cernavoda‑2 started up in Romania in 2007.
1175 - WNN, “Karachi 2 reactor internals in place”, 31 January 2019, see http://world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Karachi-2-reactorinternals-in-place, accessed 15 June 2019.
1176 - Business Today, “Pakistan has taken $6.5 billion loan from China in July-April: Report”, 23 May 2019,see https://www.businesstoday.in/current/economy-politics/pakistan-has-taken-65-billion-loan-from-china-in-july-april-report/
story/349611.html, accessed 15 June 2019.
1177 - IRENA, “Renewable Capacity Statistics 2019”, March 2019, see https://www.irena.org/-/media/Files/IRENA/Agency/
Publication/2019/Mar/IRENA_RE_Capacity_Statistics_2019.pdf, accessed 3 April 2019.
1178 - REVE, “CPEC contributes 300MW wind energy in Pakistan”, 1 January 2019, see https://www.evwind.es/2019/01/01/cpeccontributes-300mw-wind-energy-in-pakistan/65652 , accessed 15 June 2019; and Hamsa Zakir, “Saudi Arabia in talks with Pakistan toinvest $4 billion in solar energy project”, TechJuice, 12 June 2019, see https://www.techjuice.pk/saudi-arabia-in-talks-with-pakistan-toinvest-4-billion-in-solar-energy-project/, accessed 15 June 2019.

| 270

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 271

Figure 54 | Nuclear Reactors Startups and Closures in the EU28, 1956–1 July 2019

Reactor Startups and Closures in the EU28
in Units, from 1956 to 1 July 201915

Reactor Startups

YearlyBalance

Reactor Closures© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

10

6Temelin-1
Temelin-2
Cernavoda-2

0 56

1960

1965

1970

1975

1980

1985

1990

1995

2000

2005

2010

2015

2019

-4

-10

Sources: WNISR, IAEA-PRIS, 2019

No reactor was closed in the EU since WNISR2018. The total number of permanently closed
units remains at 94 in the European Union, and, as of 1 July 2019, the 28 countries in theenlarged EU operated 126 reactors, about one-third of the world total, 49 less than the historicmaximum of 175 units in 19881179 (see Figure 55), but one more than one year earlier: The
French Paluel‑2 reactor was restarted in July 2018, after an extended outage of 1,154 days since
May 2015 and therefore in Long‑Term Outage or LTO (see France Focus in WNISR2018 fordetails).
The vast majority of the operating facilities, 107 units or over 80 percent, are located in eightof the western countries, and only 19 are in the six newer member states with nuclear power.
In 2018, nuclear plants have generated 787 TWh, quasi stable (-0.3 percent) compared tothe previous year. While the nuclear’s share in net power production is not yet available, BP
indicates a 25 percent share in gross generation.1180

1179 - Note: In previous editions of the WNISR, the peak for the EU was indicated as 177 reactors in operation in 1988–1989. However,in the wake of the Italian referendum in 1987, two reactors (Caorso and Trino/Fermi), then off-line, were never brought back online,
and although their official closure date is 1990, the WNISR considers them closed as of last production day. This was not fully reflectedin previous versions of this graph. Similar adaptations of our database also affect some other reactors in other countries. This is inparticular the case for earlier closure dates for two German reactors (Krümmel and Brunsbüttel) that were officially closed in 2011 as aconsequence of the Fukushima accident but had not been providing electricity to the grid since 2009 and 2007 respectively.
1180 - BP, “Statistical Review of World Energy–Workbook”, Statistics Work Book, June 2019, op. cit.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 272

Figure 55 | Nuclear Reactors and Net Operating Capacity in the EU28

Nuclear Reactors and Net Operating Capacity in the EU 28
in Units and GWe, from 1956 to 1 July 20191989
175 Reactors
123.3 GWe
1988
Maximum Number
of Reactors: 175

150

2000
Maximum Operating
Capacity: 136.8 GWe

GWe
7/2019126 Reactors
118.1 GWe 150

Reactors in Operation
Operating Capacity© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

100

100

50

50

0

1956

1960

1965

1970

1975

1980

1985

1990

1995

2000

2005

2010

2015

19

0

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

In the absence of any new-build program, the average age of nuclear power plants keeps
increasing and at mid‑2019 stands at 34.4 years (see Figure 56). The age distribution showsthat now over 82 percent—104 of 126—of the EU’s operating nuclear reactors have been in
operation for 31 years and beyond.
Figure 56 | Age Distribution of the EU28 Reactor Fleet

Age of EU Nuclear Fleet
as of 1 July 2019

Reactor Age90

11–20 Years
21–30 Years
31–40 Years
41 Years and Over17
5

126 Reactors
Mean Age
34.4 Years

50 Number of Reactors
by Age Class
14© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

WESTERN EUROPE
As of 1 July 2019, 107 nuclear power reactors operated in the EU15, 48 units fewer than in thepeak years of 1988/89. As stated above, Paluel‑2 in France restarted generating power after aparticularly long shutdown and was thus moved from the Longt-Term Outage (LTO), back to
the operating-category.
Three reactors are currently under construction in the older member states, one each in
Finland (Olkiluoto‑3), France (Flamanville‑3) and the U.K. (Hinkley Point C‑1). All of theseprojects are European Pressurized water Reactors (EPR) and all of them are many years behind
their initial schedule and billions of Euros over budget (details are discussed in other chaptersof the report).
The following section provides a short overview by country (in alphabetical order).

Belgium
See Focus Countries – Belgium Focus.

FinlandSee Focus Countries – Finland Focus.

FranceSee Focus Countries – France Focus.

Germany
See Focus Countries – Germany Focus.

The Netherlands
The Netherlands operates a single, 46-year-old 480 MW Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) at
Borssele that provided 3.34 TWh and 3 percent of the country’s electricity in 2018, comparedwith 3.26 TWh or 2.9 percent in 2017 and a maximum of 6.2 percent in 1986. In late 2006,
the operator and the Government reached an agreement to allow operation of the reactor tocontinue until 2033.1181
In January 2012, the utility DELTA announced it was putting off the decision on nuclear newbuild “for a few years” and that there would be “no second nuclear plant at Borssele for thetime being”.1182 In 2009 it had proposed 2500 MW of new nuclear capacity at Borssele with
1181 - WNA, “Nuclear Power in the Netherlands”, Updated February 2017, see http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/inf107.html,
accessed 17 June 2019.
1182 - DELTA, “DELTA puts off decision for a few years, no second nuclear plant at Borssele for the time being”, Press Release,
23 January 2012.

| 273

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

a startup date of 2018.1183 No utility is currently showing any interest in pursuing new-build.
On the contrary, the nuclear utilities are struggling with shrinking income and increasing
costs. German utility Rheinisch-Westfälisches Elektrizitätswerk AG or RWE AG, that holds
30 percent of Borssele operator EPZ (Elektriciteits Produktiemaatschappij Zuid-Nederland),reported for 2017 a €58 million (US$62 million) impairment loss for EPZ, just as in 2016.1184 In
May 2019, EPZ announced losses of €50 million (US$56 million) for 2018.1185
The company predicted nevertheless that with rising electricity prices, it expected to returnto profit from 2021. However, an assessment in 2017 by financial management consultancy
Spring Associates demonstrated that electricity prices would have to double to make thenuclear plant profitable again, an unlikely scenario. The most economic scenario identified
would be immediate closure of the reactor and delayed decommissioning, according to theanalysts.1186 EPZ is required to establish a €600‑million (US$673 million) decommissioning
fund three years prior to reactor closure currently scheduled for 2033, which would be evenmore problematic if the reactor was to close earlier. As of 2018 the fund stood at €247.2 million(US$277 million), with a deposit made of €45.9 million (US$51.5 million) during the year.1187
In 2014, EPZ started using uranium-plutonium Mixed Oxide (MOX) fuel at Borssele. EPZ
is currently the only remaining foreign customer for commercial spent fuel reprocessing of
Orano’s La Hague plant. The plan is to consume all of the plutonium that is separated in asmuch as 40 percent MOX in the core.1188 Short-term closure would jeopardize the plan.
As in other countries, the Dutch power sector is undergoing profound restructuring. EPZ owner
Delta was renamed PZEM (Provinciale Zeeuwse Energie Maatschappij N.V.) in early 2017, parts(not Borssele) of which then have been sold to Stedin Holding, as part of the unbundling ofproduction and networking activities.1189 In January 2019, it was announced that Vattenfall had
acquired DELTA Energie.1190
In October 2018, the Dutch government was found to be in non-compliance with the Aarhus
Convention when it failed to conduct a public consultation on extending the operating life of1183 - LAKA Foundation, “Dutch utility Delta wins court case Borssele-I and announces Borssele-II”, Nuclear Monitor, 16 July 2009,see https://wiseinternational.org/nuclear-monitor/691/dutch-utility-delta-wins-court-case-borssele-i-and-announces-borssele-ii,
accessed 14 June 2019.
1184 - RWE, “Annual Report 2017”, 2018, see http://www.rwe.com/web/cms/mediablob/en/3876342/data/3759768/6/rwe/investorrelations/reports/2017/RWE-annual-report-2017.pdf, accessed 14 June 2019.
1185 - Frank Balkenende, “PZEM’s birthday is full of confidence again”, PZC, 2 May 2019 (in Dutch),see https://www.pzc.nl/zeeuws-nieuws/jarig-pzem-blaakt-weer-van-het-zelfvertrouwen~a8cd3352/, accessed 12 June 2019.
1186 - DutchNews, “Government investment in nuclear power plant financially risky: report”, 4 October 2016, see http://www.
dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2016/10/government-investment-in-nuclear-power-plant-financially-risky-report/, accessed 14 June 2019.
1187 - EPZ, “Annual Report 2018”, 2019 (in Dutch), see https://epzjaarverslag.nl/portfolio/items/economie/, accessed 15 June 2019.
1188 - Jan Wieman, “Borssele moves to MOX”, Fuel Cycle Manager, EPZ, published in NEI, 11 March 2015,see http://www.neimagazine.com/features/featureborssele-moves-to-mox-4530062/, accessed 14 June 2019.
1189 - Stedin Group, PZEM, “Delta Network Continues as Part of the Stedin Group”, Press Release, 31 March 2017,see https://www.pzem.nl/sites/default/files/Press Release Stedin Groep PZEM.pdf, accessed 14 June 2019.
1190 - Vattenfall, “Vattenfall acquires Dutch electricity and gas sales company DELTA Energie”, Press Release, POWER,
19 January 2019, see https://www.powermag.com/press-releases/vattenfall-acquires-dutch-electricity-and-gas-sales-company-deltaenergie/, accessed 14 June 2019.

| 274

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Borssele.1191 The convention is an international environmental agreement under the auspices of
the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) which addresses access to information andpublic participation. The ruling requires the Dutch government to conduct an Environmental
Impact Assessment (EIA) involving stakeholders in the Netherlands, but also in neighboringstates. The evidence of non-compliance was submitted to Aarhus by Greenpeace Netherlands,
which had lost previous claims in Dutch courts on the public consultation process.
The ruling governing party, VVD, announced in January 2019 that it was developing new ideas
for nuclear power in Netherlands.1192 The options under consideration were further extension ofoperations at Borssele, construction of a new plant, or realizing new nuclear power plants in a
European context. The response from industry in the Netherlands was to dismiss the initiativeas wholly unrealistic. “The business case for nuclear energy is all in all very unattractive,” saidenergy company Eneco, as “the cost of nuclear energy is currently two to three times higher
than renewable energy from wind and solar.”1193 The operator of Borssele in May 2019 statedthat any new nuclear plant would “never happen” without government financing.1194

Spain
Spain operates seven reactors, following the decision to close the 47-year‑old Garoña reactor
in August 2017, when the then government refused to approve license renewal.1195 Nuclear
plants provided 53.4 TWh in 2018, a 4‑percent decline from the 55.6 TWh in 2017, representing
20.4 percent of the country’s electricity in 2018 (21.2 percent in 2017 and a maximum of
38.4 percent in 1989). Spain’s reactors have a mean operating age of 34.4 years as of 1 July 2019.
The end of the conservative government of Mariano Rajoy and the formation of a new
government in May 2018 under Socialist Party (PSOE) leader Pedro Sánchez led to a major
shift in energy and climate policy.1196 The PSOE policy platform in 2016 had focused on energy
efficiency and renewable energy, while reducing fossil fuel use and a commitment to permit
operation of Spain’s reactors for a maximum of forty years.1197 In March 2018, prior to entering
government, the PSOE had issued a report that proposed the closure of coal-fired and nuclear
1191 - UNECE, “Findings and recommendations with regard to communication ACCC/C/2014/104 concerning compliance by the
Netherlands Adopted by the Compliance Committee on 4 October 2018”, Economic Commission for Europe, Meeting of the Parties
to the Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters
Compliance Committee Sixty-third meeting Geneva, 11–15 March 2019, Item 9 of the agenda,
see https://www.unece.org/fileadmin/DAM/env/pp/compliance/CC-63/ece.mp.pp.c.1.2019.3.en.pdf, accessed 12 June 2019.
1192 - David Bremmer, “VVD starts again about nuclear energy: fewer mills, more nuclear power stations”, AD, 19 January 2019(in Dutch), see https://www.ad.nl/politiek/vvd-begint-weer-over-kernenergie-minder-molens-meer-kerncentrales~a0b36295/, accessed
12 June 2019.
1193 - David Bremmer, “Energy giants fill the VVD proposal for new nuclear power stations”, AD, 6 November 2018 (in Dutch),see https://www.ad.nl/economie/energiereuzen-fileren-vvd-voorstel-voor-nieuwe-kerncentrales~a93c015e/, accesed 12 June 2019.
1194 - PZC, 2 May 2019, Op. cit.; and Laka, “PZEM: “profit again in 2021; no new nuclear power plant without a subsidy”, 3 May 2019(in Dutch), see https://www.laka.org/nieuws/2019/pzem-in-2021-weer-winst-geen-nieuwe-kerncentrale-zonder-subsidie-10626,
accessed 12 June 2019.
1195 - Ministry of Energy, “Energy denies the renewal of Garoña’s operating authorization”, 1 August 2017 (in Spanish),see http://www.minetad.gob.es/es-ES/GabinetePrensa/NotasPrensa/2017/Paginas/denegacion-garona20170801.aspx, accessed 14 June 2019.
1196 - El Paí s, “Spain’s new PM signals change of tack on climate change”, 6 June 2018 (in Spanish),see https://elpais.com/elpais/2018/06/06/inenglish/1528270804_597351.html, accessed 14 June 2019.
1197 - PSOE, “Programa Electoral Elecciones Generales 2016”, 2016 (in Spanish), see http://www.psoe.es/media-content/2016/05/
PSOE- Programa-Electoral-2016.pdf, accessed 5 June 2018.

| 275

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 276

plants by 2025.1198 Shortly after forming a coalition government, it restated that a four year
nuclear phase-out would take place between 2024–2028.1199
In late January 2019, after months of negotiation, a nuclear phase-out plan was agreed between
the then PSOE‑led government and utilities Endesa, Iberdrola and Naturgy. The phase-out
was part of the overall Integrated Energy and Climate Plan (PIEC) which was approved by
the Cabinet meeting on 22 February 2019.1200 The details of the reactor closure dates were
published in February 2019 by newspaper Cincodías.1201 All of Spain’s reactors would be closed
by 2035 (see Table 22); however, the policy also secures lifetime extension of all reactors
beyond 40 years, in contrast to previous stated PSOE policy. On 3 March 2019, Teresa Ribera,
Minister for the Ecological Transition, confirmed that agreement had been reached with
Iberdrola, Endesa and Naturgy that in effect extends operation of their reactors.1202 The plan
was one of the last policies proposed before parliamentary elections in April 2019. Following
the election, when the PSOE won the most seats but without an overall majority, negotiations
between the PSOE and other parties to form a government were still deadlocked as of earlyAugust 2019.
Table 22 | Spain’s Nuclear Phase-Out Timetable
Reactor

Almaraz-1

Almaraz-2

Capacity

900

900

Reactor
Type

PWR

PWR

Asco-1888

PWR

Asco-2888

PWR

Cofrentes

939

BWR

Vadellos-2

930

PWR

Trillo-1

990

PWR

Owner

Percentage
ownership

Ibedrola

53

Endesa36

Naturgy

11

Ibedrola

53

Endesa36

Naturgy

11

Endesa100

Endesa85

Ibedrola

15

Ibedrola

100

Endesa72

Ibedrola

28

Ibedrola

48

Naturgy

35.4

EDP

15.5

Nuclenor2

Gridconnection(Age)

Current
Operational
LicenseScheduled
Closure1 May 1981
(38 years)

June 2020

2027

8 October 1983
(36 years)

June 2020

2028

13 August 1983
(36 years)

September 2021

2029

23 October 1985
(34 years)

September 2021

2030

14 October 1984
(35 years)

March 2021

2033

12 December 1987
(32 years)

July 2020

2034

23 May 1988
(31 years)

November 2024

2035

Sources: Cincodias and WNISR, 2019.

1198 - Ibidem.
1199 - Ibidem.
1200 - Carmen Monforte, “The Government closes the calendar with the closing dates of each nuclear power plant”, Cincodías,
EL PAÍS, 11 February 2019 (in Spanish), see https://cincodias.elpais.com/cincodias/2019/02/08/companias/1549647160_807281.html,
accessed 15 June 2019.
1201 - Ibidem.
1202 - P úblico, “Minister Ribera affirms that it is necessary to prolong the life of nuclear power plants”, 3 March 2019 (in Spanish),see https://www.publico.es/politica/energia-nuclear-prolonga-vida-centrales-nucleares.html, accessed 14 June 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

A major point of tension between the utilities was over the amortization of their reactors.
Iberdrola had accounted for the nuclear plants’ operating until 40 years, whereas Endesa hadplanned for 50-year operation in its accounts. Iberdrola has said that it also has no financial
incentive to continue nuclear operations if the business continues to lose money.1203 Iberdrola
and Naturgy had put forward plans for extension of the Almaraz reactors to 2027, of which
they jointly share ownership together with Endesa, on the condition that they would be able
to withdraw if there was a requirement to make further investments. Endesa, which was notin favor of reactor closure before 50 years, set no conditions. Endesa’s Chief Financial Officer
stated in February 2019 that closure could increase its annual depreciation and amortization
costs by €50–60 million (US$56–67.8 million).1204 On 22 March 2019, Iberdrola confirmedthat it had reached agreement for the extension of the Almaraz‑1 and ‑2 reactors to operate
until 1 November 2027 and 31 October 2028 respectively, and that it had applied for license
extension.1205 The agreement is based on the condition that Iberdrola will spend no more than€600 million (US$677 million) during the remaining operational life of the reactors.1206
Environmental groups criticized the agreement to extend the lifetime of Spain’s reactors,
including in terms of unresolved safety issues of aging reactors and the issue of a significant
shortfall in decommissioning funds, in particular for Endesa, which they argued was a major
factor in its seeking life extensions.1207 As with nations worldwide operating nuclear reactors,
there has been longstanding questioning of the adequacy of Spain’s decommissioning funds.1208
Under the nuclear regulation, utilities’ operational licenses must be applied for every ten years,
and both Almaraz reactors were required to apply for license renewal before 31 March 2019,and secure approval prior to the expiration of their licenses in June 2020.
On 28 March 2019, it was confirmed that Asociación Nuclear Ascó‑Vandellós II, known as
ANAV, the operator of Vandellos‑2, had applied for 10‑year license renewal taking it to 2030.1209
Under the recently agreed PIEC, Vandellos‑2 is scheduled to operate until 2034, and therefore
a further license extension may be sought prior to 2030.

1203 - MW, “Spain’s Endesa to apply to renew all reactor licenses in 2019, 2020”, 7 March 2019.
1204 - Isla Binnie, “Power firms at odds over how to shut down Spain’s oldest nuclear plant”, Reuters, 13 March 2019,see https://www.reuters.com/article/us-spain-energy-nuclear/power-firms-at-odds-over-how-to-shut-down-spains-oldest-nuclearplant-idUSKCN1QU2OY, accessed 14 June 2019.
1205 - Iberdrola, “Iberdrola finalises the Almaraz renewal agreement, which guarantees economic activity and employment at the plant
for the next 25 years”, 22 March 2019, see https://www.iberdrola.com/press-room/news/detail/iberdrola-finalises-almaraz-renewalagreement-which-guarantees-economic-activity-employment-plant-next-years, accessed 14 June 2019.
1206 - Isla Binnie, “Power firms agree on route to close Spain’s oldest nuclear plant”, Reuters, 22 March 2019,see https://www.reuters.com/article/us-spain-energy-nuclearpower/power-firms-agree-on-route-to-close-spains-oldest-nuclear-plantidUSKCN1R325G, accessed 14 June 2019.
1207 - Greenpeace Spain, “Proposals for a horizon without nuclear in Spain”, February 2019 (in Spanish),see https://es.greenpeace.org/es/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2019/02/Dossier-informativo-para-medios-propuesta-cierre-nuclearrevision-1.pdf; and Renewables Foundation, “Greenpeace and the Renewables Foundation ask the Government for social participationin the nuclear closure and accelerate the ecological transition”, 19 February 2019,see https://fundacionrenovables.org/notas/greenpeace-y-la-fundacion-renovables-piden-al-gobierno-participacion-social-en-el-cierrenuclear-y-acelerar-la-transicion-ecologica/; both accessed 14 June 2019.
1208 - Mycle Schneider et al., “Country Report Spain—Comparison among different decommissioning funds methodologies fornuclear installations”, Wuppertal Institute on behalf of the Directorate-General Energy and Transport, European Commission,
31 October 20016, see https://epub.wupperinst.org/frontdoor/deliver/index/docId/2597/file/2597_EUDecommFunds_ES.pdf, accessed
14 June 2019.
1209 - Platts Nuclear News Flashes, “Operator of Spain’s Vandellos-2 applies for 10-year license renewal”, 28 March 2019.

| 277

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

SwedenSweden’s nuclear fleet of eight reactors generated 65.87 TWh or 40.3 percent of the country’s
electricity production in 2018, compared with 63.1 TWh and 39.6 percent in 2017. Wholly stateowned utility Vattenfall co-owns seven reactors,1210 while OKG (Oskarshamns Kraftgrupp
AB)1211 owns the eighth, Oskarshamn-3. The respective majority owner operates each plant.
Vattenfall also holds shares in three German nuclear power plants, two which were neverrestarted after 3/11 (Brunsbüttel, Krümmel) and one scheduled for closure in 2021 (Brokdorf).
The past year has seen calls by the right‑of‑center opposition parties for a new long-term
energy strategy, including overturning the 2016 policy that would see nuclear power phasedout by 2040. This included calls in May 2019 for the scrapping of the closure of the Ringhals-1
and -2 reactors, scheduled for December 2020 and December 2019 respectively.1212 The call torevisit the nation’s energy policy was led by the conservative Moderate Party, which had signed
in support of the 2016 policy when it called for a fossil-free energy policy.1213 This prompted
Magnus Hall, CEO of Vattenfall, to dismiss the prospects as not economic, noting the problem
with a containment plate in Ringhals-2.1214 The Ringhals‑2 reactor was brought back online in
November 2016, after over two years of shutdown for repairs. The reactor restarted in spite of a“corroded reactor containment liner” after the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority (SSM) had
granted an “exemption from its official regulations” for its remaining lifetime.1215
Sweden decided in a 1980 referendum to phase out nuclear power by 2010. Sweden retained
the 2010 phase-out date until the middle of the 1990s, but an active debate on the country’s
nuclear future continued and led to a new inter-party deal to start the phase-out earlier butabandon the 2010 deadline. The first reactor (Barsebäck‑1) was closed in 1999 and the second
one (Barsebäck‑2) in 2005. In June 2010, the parliament voted by a tight margin (174–172)
to abandon the phase-out legislation. As a result, theoretically, a new plant could again bebuilt—but only if an existing plant is closed. The latest “traditional Swedish compromise”, inJune 2016, saw an agreement reached on future energy policy.1216 The Red-Green Government
and three opposition parties confirmed the baseline of the 2010 agreement and fixed a 2040
target for a 100‑percent renewable electricity mix. In October 2015, OKG decided the earlyclosure of Oskarshamn‑1 and ‑2.1217 Oskarshamn‑2 had been off‑grid since May 2013 and wasnever restarted. On 22 December 2016, the 40-year-old Oskarshamn-2 was officially closed,
followed on 17 June 2017 with the closure of the 46‑year-old Oskarshamn‑1.1218
1210 - Ringhals-1–4 (Vattenfall 70.4%, E.ON 29.6%), Forsmark-1–3 (FKG, Vattenfall 66%, Mellansvensk Kraftgrupp 25.5%, E.ON 8.5%)
1211 - OKG is owned by Uniper Sverige (formerly Sydkraft), an E.ON spinoff, for 54.5% and Fortum for 45.5%.
1212 - Svenska Dagbladet, “M and KD want to see more nuclear power in settlement”, 15 May 2019 (in Swedish),see https://www.svd.se/m-och-kd-vill-se-mer-karnkraft, accessed 24 June 2019.
1213 - NW, “Swedish conservatives call for continued use of nuclear power”, 11 April 2019.
1214 - Birgitta Forsberg, “The climate threat: Vattenfall’s CEO: More nuclear power not the solution”, Svenska Dagbladet, 20 May 2019
(in Swedish), see https://www.svd.se/vattenfalls-vd-mer-karnkraft-inte-losningen, accessed 24 June 2019.
1215 - WNN, “Daily”, 4 November 2016.
1216 - Government Offices of Sweden, “Framework agreement between the Swedish Social Democratic Party, the Moderate Party, theSwedish Green Party, the Centre Party and the Christian Democrats”, 16 June 2016, see https://www.government.se/49d8c1/contentass
ets/8239ed8e9517442580aac9bcb00197cc/ek-ok-eng.pdf, accessed 24 June 2019.
1217 - OKG, “Decision Made Regarding Premature Shutdown of Units Oskarshamn 1 and Oskarshamn 2”, 14 October 2015,see https://www.okg.se/en/Media/Archive-2015/Decision/, accessed 26 June 2019.
1218 - WNISR, “Sweden Retires First Commercial Nuclear Reactor (Oskarshamn-1)”, 21 June 2017,see https://www.worldnuclearreport.org/Sweden-Retires-First-Commercial-Nuclear-Reactor-Oskarshamn-1.html, accessed 24 June 2019.

| 278

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

“

| 279

the disadvantage of nuclear power is thatit has become so expensive to build that it is difficult to motivate
to build new nuclear power”

To operate reactors into the 2040s, owners need to win approval during ten-year periodic
safety reviews. The first to do so under the new 2016 policy were the 39‑year-old Forsmark‑1
and 38‑year-old Forsmark‑2, which secured approval on 18 June 2019 SSM to operate for 10
more years until 2028.1219 The SSM approved continued operation for the reactors, while alsofinding “deficiencies regarding the containment and aging of concrete structures deemedas small in the current situation, but it may increase in the long term if the deficiencies are
not remedied since serious degradations....may occur in the reactor containment and otherbuilding structures of importance for radiation safety.”1220
The 2016 policy agreement also allows for the building of new reactors, but, as in the previous
agreement, only for replacement and not in addition to existing units. The agreement also
stipulates: “Government support for nuclear energy, in the form of direct or indirect subsidies,cannot be counted upon”.1221 Vattenfall CEO Hall stated in May 2019 that “the disadvantage of
nuclear power is that it has become so expensive to build that it is difficult to motivate to build
new nuclear power.”1222
Currently, six of Sweden’s reactors are scheduled for 60-year operation into the 2040s, withclosure of the last reactor in 2045,1223 when Sweden plans to have 100 percent of its electricity
generated by renewable energy. Vattenfall has now a modest total of 2.8 GW of renewables inoperation in various countries but has another 7 GW under development. The company plans a€5 billion (US$5.7 billion) investment in renewables in the coming years.1224
On 1 July 2017, the Swedish government started phasing out its capacity tax on nuclear
power production. Utilities had warned the government that without the repeal of the tax
they may shut more reactors permanently.1225 “The tax reduction will be 3 billion crowns
per year (US$343 million)… This tax relief is (for us) more pointed towards investments on
1219 - SSM, “Forsmark has the potential to continue driving F1 and F2 radiation-safe until 2028”, 24 June 2019 (in Swedish),see https://www.stralsakerhetsmyndigheten.se/press/nyheter/2019/forsmark-har-forutsattningar-att-fortsatta-driva-f1-och-f2stralsakert-till-2028/, accessed 25 June 2019.
1220 - SSM, “Events global assessment / Forsmark Group AB / Forsmark 1 and 2 Oversight Report”, 18 June 2019 (in Swedish),see https://www.stralsakerhetsmyndigheten.se/contentassets/6b998f90ef4c4dda8a5914ce3c3ca982/granskning-av-aterkommandehelhetsbedomning-av-forsmark-1-och-2.pdf, accessed 24 June 2019.
1221 - Government Offices of Sweden, “Framework agreement between the Swedish Social Democratic Party, the Moderate Party, theSwedish Green Party, the Centre Party and the Christian Democrats”, 16 June 2016, op.cit.
1222 - Birgitta Forsberg, “The climate threat: Vattenfall’s CEO: More nuclear power not the solution”, Svenska Dagbladet, 20 May 2019,
op.cit.
1223 - IAEA, “Asset Management At Nuclear Power Plants—With International Standards And Principles”, Vattenfall, IAEACN‑246‑14,
October 2017, see https://www.iaea.org/NuclearPower/Downloadable/Meetings/2017/2017-10-23-10-27- NPTDS/054_Frojd_
Presentation.pdf, accessed 24 June 2019.
1224 - Vattenfall, “Increase renewables“, 19 April 2018, see https://corporate.vattenfall.com/sustainability/production/increaserenewables/; and Vattenfall, “Annual and Sustainability Report 2018—Fossil-free living within one generation”, March 2019,see https://group.vattenfall.com/siteassets/corporate/investors/annual-reports/2018/vattenfall_annual_and_sustainability_
report_2018_eng.pdf, both accessed 24 June 2019.
1225 - Nerijus Adomaitis, “Vattenfall puts pressure on Swedish government to cut nuclear tax”, Reuters, 28 April 2016,see https://www.reuters.com/article/vattenfall-nuclear-idUSL5N17V5HN, accessed 24 June 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

the prolongation of Swedish nuclear” Vattenfall stated.1226 The decision prompted Vattenfall
on 17 November 2017 to announce that it would invest SEK900 million (US$105.8 million)in the installation of independent core cooling systems at Ringhals‑3 and ‑4.1227 Following
the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority required
the installation of such systems by 2020 as a condition of granting approval for continued
operation.1228
A critique of the so called stress tests performed on European nuclear reactors following the
Fukushima accident concluded: “In their current state, the four Ringhals reactors are not able
to withstand a design basis earthquake (DBE).”1229 Vattenfall decided in June 2016 to install
independent core cooling systems at its three Forsmark reactors.1230 Installation is planned tobe completed in 2019.1231
Note
WNISR has decided to add the Marviken reactor to its reactor database as “abandoned
construction project”. Marviken was a 100 MWe boiling water reactor moderated by heavy
water and was located at Vikbolandet, east of Norrköping in Östergötland. Its construction
was completed and cold-tested. It was designed for natural uranium fuel but never loaded.
It was built as a potential plutonium production reactor for the Swedish weapons program,but the construction turned out to have safety problems. The project was cancelled in 1970.
Sweden gave up its nuclear weapons program, and its signature of the 1968 Non-Proliferation
Treaty (NPT) also made the reactor obsolete.

Switzerland
Switzerland is the only non-EU Western European country generating nuclear power.
Nuclear output was 24.4 TWh in 2018, a significant improvement (close to +5 TWh) overthe performance in 2017 that had been the lowest level since 1984. The average load factor
jumped to 86.5 percent, up from 66.1 percent in 2017. Nuclear represented 37.7 percent of the1226 - Lefteris Karagiannopoulos, “Sweden’s nuclear tax phase-out to save Vattenfall SEK 3 bln/yr -CEO”, Reuters, 7 July 2017,see https://www.reuters.com/article/sweden-nuclear-vattenfall-idAFL8N1JY30H, accessed 24 June 2019.
1227 - NW, “Vattenfall to install extra core cooling at Ringhals units”, 23 November 2017.
1228 - IAEA, “Post-Fukushima Safety Upgrade Of Ringhals Unit 3 And 4, Technical Meeting on Operational Experience with
Implementation of Post-Fukushima Actions in Nuclear Power Plants”, 27–29 March 2017, see https://www.iaea.org/NuclearPower/
Downloadable/Meetings/2017/2017-03-27-03-29-NPES/16_Lindback.pdf; and Vattenfall, “Vattenfall invests in Ringhals upgrade”,
Press Release, 17 November 2017, see https://group.vattenfall.com/press-and-media/news--press-releases/pressreleases/2017/vattenfallinvests-in-ringhals-upgrade, both accessed 24 June 2019.
1229 - Antonia Wenisch, Oda Becker, “Critical Review of the EU Stress Test performed on Nuclear Power Plants”, Greenpeace,
May 2012, see https://www.greenpeace.de/sites/www.greenpeace.de/files/20120613-Critical-Review-of-EU-Stress-Test-Greenpeace.pdf,
accessed 24 June 2019.
1230 - NW, “Vattenfall to install extra core cooling at Ringhals units”, 23 November 2017.
1231 - Caterpillar, “Forsmarks Kraftgrupp AB Selects Caterpillar, Zeppelin Power Systems To Supply Engines For Independent Core
Cooling At Nuclear Power Plant”, Press Release, 17 April 2018, see https://www.cat.com/en_GB/news/engine-press-releases/Forsmarkskraftgrupp-ab-selects-caterpillar-zeppelin-power-systems.html, accessed 24 June 2019.

| 280

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 281

country’s electricity (maximum of 43 percent in 1996).1232 With an average age of 44.2 years (seeFigure 57), Switzerland operates the oldest nuclear fleet and—with Beznau‑1, age 50 since gridconnection as of 17 July 2019—the third oldest reactor in the world by length of commercial
operation.
On 21 May 2017, 58 percent of Swiss voters adopted the Energy Strategy 2050 that provides
a long-term policy framework based on the dynamic development of energy efficiency andrenewable energies. The strategy does not fix any closure dates for nuclear power plants andaims to keep the existing reactors operating “as long as they are safe”. However, it prohibits
the construction of new nuclear power plants and the reprocessing of spent fuel. The “totallyrevised energy legislation” was adopted by the Swiss parliament on 1 November 2017 andentered into force on 1 January 2018.1233
Figure 57 | Age Distribution of the Swiss Nuclear Fleet

Age of Swiss Nuclear Fleet
as of 1 July 2019

3
Reactor Age2

31–40 Years
41 Years and Over5 Reactors
Mean Age44.2 Years

50 Number of Reactors
by Age Class© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

The new legislation is comprehensive, providing a framework for grid development regulation,
renewable energy incentives, auto-consumption, energy efficiency and the “organic phase-out”
of nuclear power. The efficiency targets are ambitious, with reduction of per-capita energy
consumption levels—compared to the 2000 baseline—by 16 percent by 2020 and 43 percent
by 2035, while per-capita electricity consumption is to decrease by 3 percent by 2020 and
13 percent by 2035. According to the “Energy Strategy 2050 Monitoring Report 2018”, final
energy consumption per capita (weather‑adjusted) had decreased by 16.3 percent as of the endof 2017, while per-capita power consumption had decreased by 5 percent, so both indicators are
already exceeding the 2020 targets.1234 In addition, per-capita power consumption decreased

1232 - SFOE, “Schweizerische Elektrizitätsstatistik 2018”, Swiss Federal Office of Energy, June 2019 (in German),see https://www.bfe.admin.ch/bfe/de/home/versorgung/statistik-und-geodaten/energiestatistiken/elektrizitaetsstatistik/_jcr_content/
par/tabs/items/tab/tabpar/externalcontent.external.exturl.pdf/aHR0cHM6Ly9wdWJkYi5iZmUuYWRtaW4uY2gvZGUvcHVibGljYX/
Rpb24vZG93bmxvYWQvOTc0OC5wZGY=.pdf, accessed 21 June 2019. The official national figures vary slightly from the IAEA‑PRIS
statistics that give 44.4 percent as the historic maximum.
1233 - SFOE, “Wichtigste Neuerungen im Energierecht ab 2018”, 2 November 2017 (in German),see https://www.newsd.admin.ch/newsd/message/attachments/50166.pdf, accessed 12 July 2018.
1234 - OFEN, “Stratégie énergétique 2050—Rapport de Monitoring 2018”, November 2018.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 by another 2.15 percent in 2018, so Switzerland demonstrates that significantly more ambitious
targets would be achievable.
By 2020, domestic production of non-hydro renewable-energy based electricity is to reacha modest target of 4.4 TWh, 75 percent of which was achieved as of the end of 2017 with
3.65 TWh and the level increased to 3.9 TWh in 2018.1235
In October 2013, operator BKW announced that it would close its Mühleberg reactor in 2019, due
to “indefinable and unquantifiable… technical, economic and political uncertainties [that] could
increase the economic risks of long-term operation.”1236 In March 2016, BKW communicatedthe date when Mühleberg will be disconnected from the grid as of 20 December 2019.1237 On
20 June 2018, the Federal Energy Department issued the formal closure decision and granted ageneral decommissioning license.1238
Following the reactor pressure vessel problems identified at the Belgian Doel-3/Tihange-2
reactors (see Belgium Focus), inspections have been carried out at the two Beznau units, both
365 MW Westinghouse Pressurized Water Reactors (PWRs). In the pressure vessel of Beznau‑1,
a total of 925 crack indications, up to 7.5 x 7.5 mm in size and 60 mm in depth, have been identified.
According to operator Axpo, with a high degree of confidence, the faults would not be hydrogen
flakes, as in the Belgian cases, but aluminum oxide enclosures from the fabrication process. In
the pressure vessel of Beznau‑2, 77 crack indications have been found with a maximum size of
20 x 50 mm.1239 After evaluation of the identified defects in Unit 2, in December 2015, the Swiss
Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate (ENSI) granted restart permission for the reactor, while
Unit 1 remained offline for further studies until 20 March 2018. The restart decision was givenin spite of a highly critical report by two nuclear experts from Öko‑Institut, Darmstadt, thatfound numerous “safety-relevant technical deficiencies”, if compared with the German reactor
safety standards.1240 Franz Untersteller, Environment Minister of Baden‑Württemberg, whocommissioned the study, stated: “Considering the results of the [expert report] the nuclear
power plant in Beznau should be closed at the earliest point in time.”1241
A three-quarter majority of the Swiss population remains in favor of abandoning nuclear
power. In a June 2019 poll for the Swiss Energy Foundation, 76 percent of the people polledwere in favor of a nuclear phase-out against 22 percent opposed.1242
1235 - SFOE, “Schweizerische Elektrizitätsstatistik 2018”, Swiss Federal Office of Energy, June 2019, op. cit.
1236 - NIW, “Switzerland—News Briefs”, 1 November 2013.
1237 - BKW, “Kernkraftwerk Mühleberg geht am 20. Dezember 2019 definitiv vom Netz—Endgültige Einstellung desLeistungsbetriebs”, Press Release, 2 March 2016 (in German), see http://www.bkw.ch/en/about-us/press-releases/detail/news/detail/News/kernkraftwerk-muehleberg-geht-am-20-dezember-2019-definitiv-vom-netz, accessed 15 June 2016.
1238 - UVEK, “Stilllegungsverfügung Kernkraftwerk Mühleberg vom 20 Juni 2018”, Eidgenössisches Departement für Umwelt,
Verkehr, Energie und Kommunikation, SFOE, 20 June 2018 (in German), see https://bkw-portal-static.s3.amazonaws.com/Webcontent/
bkw.ch/fileadmin/user_upload/Stilllegungsverf%C3%BCgung%20Kernkraftwerk%20M%C3%BChleberg%20vom%2020.%20Juni%20
2018.pdf, accessed 13 July 2018.
1239 - Christoph Pistner, “Beznau: Finding on the RPV”, Presentation at INRAG, 27 February 2016.
1240 - Christoph Pistner, Simone Mohr, “Sicherheitsstatus des Kernkraftwerks Beznau”, Öko-Institut, Darmstadt, August 2017.
1241 - Umweltministerium Baden Württemberg, “Folgegutachten zum Sicherheitsstandard im Atomkraftwerk Beznau (Schweiz): ÖkoInstitut sieht trotz Verbesserungen nach wie vor gravierende Mängel”, Press Release, 13 October 2017 (in German),see https://um.baden-wuerttemberg.de/de/service/presse/pressemitteilung/pid/folgegutachten-zum-sicherheitsstandard-imatomkraftwerk-beznau-schweiz-1/, accessed 26 May 2018.
1242 - Schweizerische Energie-Stiftung, “Klare Mehrheit der Bevölkerung für den Atomausstieg”, Press Release, 21 June 2019
(in German), see https://www.energiestiftung.ch/medienmitteilung/gfs-umfrage-klare-mehrheit-fuer-den-atomausstieg.html, accessed
22 June 2019.

| 282

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE
Bulgaria
In Bulgaria, nuclear power provided 15.44 TWh or 34.7 percent of the country’s electricity
in 2018, down from a maximum of 47.3 percent in 2002. At the country’s only nuclear power
plant, Kozloduy, there are now just two reactors operating, where originally there were six; theother four were closed after a 1992 agreement by the G7, as part of the agreement for Bulgaria
to join the EU, that these reactors were not sufficiently upgradable. The average load factor of
the two remaining reactors reached an excellent 91.9 percent, the third highest in the world.
The two VVER1000 reactors are undergoing a relicensing program to extend their operating
lifetimes for up to 60 years. In July 2018, Rusatom Service, part of Russian Rosatom, completed
an assessment of Unit 6 and concluded that it could operate for 60 years; however, the Bulgarian
regulator is expected to grant only a 10‑year lifetime extension to enable operation until 2029
(the unit was connected to the grid in 1991). The programs for upgrading and extending theoperational lives of Kozloduy‑5 and ‑6 were launched in 2015, and total costs are estimated at€360 million (US$420 million).1243
In November 2015, the Bulgarian Prime Minister, Boyko Borisov, during a visit to China, heldtalks on potential nuclear cooperation, which was followed by a Chinese delegation visiting
Kozloduy in December 2015. In 2016, it was suggested that Westinghouse, prior to its economic
collapse, would team up with State Power Investment Corporation (SPIC) to construct further
units at Kozloduy.1244 Discussions were said to be also ongoing with CNNC, with a delegation
meeting with the Prime Minister in Sofia in December 2016.1245
There have been ongoing attempts since the mid-1980s to build another nuclear power plant
at Belene in Northern Bulgaria, but so far, all of them failed. Belene was to consist of two
VVER1000/AES-92 reactors, a design that is no longer marketed by Rosatom. After the
Bulgarian government decided to cancel the project in 2012, it lost an international arbitrationcase started by Rosatom, which forced it to pay €620 million (US$2012806 million) incompensation, for which it received already produced and unsalable equipment, including two
reactor pressure vessels, heat exchangers and emergency water vessels, in return. These are
now stored at the Belene site. Since that moment, there were suggestions to use this equipment
either in Kozloduy or in a restarted Belene project.
In August 2017, the Bulgarian Energy Minister, Temenuzhka Petkova, announced that the
government planned to hold in early 2018 a tender for the sale of the partially constructed
Belene project, which would be separated from the assets of the National Electric Company.
The Government also said there would be no state guarantees or long-term power purchase1243 - NEI, “Bulgaria’s Kozloduy 6 to operate until 2051”, 1 August 2018,see https://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsbulgarias-kozloduy-6-to-operate-until-2051-6271568, accessed 18 April 2019.
1244 - C.F. Yu, “Will SPI Team Up with Westinghouse in Bulgaria?”, NIW, 26 February 2016.
1245 - Georgi Gotev, “China eyes nuclear project in Bulgaria”, Euractiv, 9 December 2016,see https://www.euractiv.com/section/energy/news/china-eyes-nuclear-project-in-bulgaria/, accessed 26 April 2018.

| 283

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 agreements1246 —conditions that will restrict and likely rule out any potential private investors.
However, the Government is also seeking to support new-build by separating the assets andthe liabilities of Belene, therefore attempting to increase the chances that the facility could be
privatized.
The Bulgarian Academy of Science produced a report at the request of the government toassess whether there are viable financial ways to continue the Belene project. An early version
leaked in mid‑2017 made clear that these did not exist. But in November 2017, the Academy
came up with a report containing one potential avenue to complete Belene: it had to be cheaper
than under the previous project at a cost of €10.15 billion (US$12.4 billion), and the price ofcapital below 4.6 percent interest.1247
The Bulgarian Government is reportedly also looking to Chinese sources, namely theCommercial Bank of China, to finance the completion of Belene,1248 and in March 2018, CNNC
were reported to have sent a letter, “declaring an interest” in the Belene project.1249 But at
the end of 2018, Energy Minister Temenuzhka Petkova said that three potential investors—
China Nuclear Corp., Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power, and France’s Framatome—had expressed
an interest in Belene and the goal was to select a winner by the end of 2019.1250 However,EU requirements—the project would require approval from the EU under Article 41 of theEuratom Treaty—and experience of over-optimistic government announcements in Bulgaria
and internationally, would suggest the timetable is unrealistic.
In March 2019, the Government announced that it was preparing to select a single strategic
investor for the project and started a tender procedure1251, which officially starts after
publication in the EU Official Journal. Initial interest has been expressed by CNNC andRosatom.

Czech Republic
The Czech Republic has six Russian-designed reactors in operation at two sites, Dukovany andTemelín. The former houses four VVER‑440‑213 reactors, the latter two VVER‑1000‑320 units.
In 2018, nuclear plants generated 28.3 TWh or 34.5 percent of the electricity, up from 26.8 TWhor 33.1 percent in 2017. The Czech Republic has the lowest load factor of any country in Central
and Eastern Europe, except for Russia, and in 2018 the reactors averaged 83.3 percent, up from74.9 percent availability.
1246 - NEI, “Bulgaria plans privatisation and sale of Belene NPP project”, 22 August 2017,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsbulgaria-plans-privatisation-and-sale-of-belene-npp-project-5906032/, accessed 26 April 2018.
1247 - NucNet, “Reviving Bulgaria’s Belene Project Could Be Economically Viable, Says Academy Report”, 17 November 2017,see https://www.nucnet.org/all-the-news/2017/11/17/reviving-bulgaria-s-belene-project-could-be-economically-viable-says-academy-report,
accessed 22 May 2018.
1248 - Gary Peach, “Can Bulgaria tempt the Chinese with Belene?”, NIW, 16 December 2016.
1249 - NEI, “Bulgaria’s Belene NPP sparks Chinese interest”, 27 March 2018,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsbulgarias-belene-npp-sparks-chinese-interest-6096463/, accessed 26 April 2018.
1250 - NIW, “Bulgaria Prepares Tender for Belene - With No Guarantees”, 14 December 2019.
1251 - Ministry of Energy, “Launch of the procedure for a strategic investor for ‘Belene’ NPP project”, Republic of Bulgaria,
11 March 2019, see https://www.me.government.bg/en/theme-news/startira-procedurata-za-izbor-na-strategicheski-investitor-poproekta-aec-belene-2706-m0-a0-1.html, accessed 4 May 2019.

| 284

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

The country was a net exporter of 13.9 TWh of electricity in 2018, equivalent to around half ofthe nuclear output, comparable to the output of Temelín. Czech electricity exports strongly
increased to this level after Temelín was brought to the grid in 2000 and have been roughly
stable ever since.
The Dukovany units were started up during 1985–87 and have already undergone a lifetime
extension upgrading program under the expectation they would operate until 2025. In
March 2016, the state regulator extended the operating license of Dukovany‑1 indefinitely 1252,
with a similar request granted for Unit 2 in July 2017 and for Units 3 and 4 in January 2018.1253
However, in February 2018, the head of the Czech State Office for Nuclear Safety, Dana
Drábová, said that there was pressure from the EU to restrict the operation life of the reactors
to 40 years.1254 Furthermore, the fact that the lifetime extension was decided without anenvironmental impact assessment is contested by Czech and Austrian NGOs under the Espoo
and Aarhus Conventions.
In 2004, Government plans proposed the construction of at least two more reactors. After aseries of unsuccessful attempts to tender out the project, in February 2014, the Government
made it clear that it wouldn’t offer a price guarantee for nuclear electricity, and ČEZ abandoned
its plans to issue tenders for new-build. Despite this, the Czech Industry and Finance Ministries
continued to promote nuclear power. But there is little incentive or rationale for pushing for
new construction in the short term. In principle, new capacity is foreseen for both locations,Dukovany and Temelín, to maintain employment after the closure of existing reactors. In
the case of Dukovany, this would theoretically require commissioning new nuclear capacity
between 2025 and 2037. ČEZ started preparatory work and, in November 2017, an application
for an Environmental Impact Assessment was filed1255,1256, without clear indication which design
is envisaged or when this project is to be realized. ČEZ also announced plans to prolong the
lifetime of the Temelín power plant to 60 years.1257
In June 2016, the Government appointed former nuclear regulator Ján Štuller as Commissioner
for Nuclear Energy to enable nuclear new-build. The Government stated that they are looking
for a strategic partner for nuclear power in the Czech Republic, with interest in co-operation
seen from Russia and South Korea.1258 In addition, in March 2016, ČEZ signed a Memorandumof Understanding (MoU) with China General Nuclear Power Corporation (CGN) on thedevelopment of nuclear power and renewables, including on the assistance of ČEZ in the1252 - NucNet, “Dukovany-2 And -3 To Undergo Extended Checks On Pipe Welds”, 13 May 2016,see https://www.nucnet.org/all-the-news/2016/05/13/dukovany-2-and-3-to-undergo-extended-checks-on-pipe-welds, accessed 29 April 2018.
1253 - ČEZ, “CEZ Group Annual Report 2017”, 2018, see https://www.cez.cz/edee/content/file/investori/vz-2017/vz-2017-en.pdf,
accessed 29 April 2018.
1254 - NEI, “Czech Republic under European pressure over Dukovany”, 26 February 2018, see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/
newsczech-republic-under-european-pressure-over-dukovany-6065809/, accessed 29 April 2018.
1255 - ČEZ, “CEZ Group Annual Report 2017”, 2018, op. cit.
1256 - ČEZ, “ČEZ Asks for Environmental Impact Assessment of New Nuclear Units at Dukovany”, 14 November 2017,see https://www.cez.cz/en/power-plants-and-environment/nuclear-power-plants/dukovany/construction-of-new-nuclear-powersources/current-news/6.html, accessed 22 May 2018.
1257 - Chris Johnstone, “Czech power giant bolsters arguments for 60 year lifespan of nuclear plants”, Radio Praha, 11 May 2018,see http://www.radio.cz/en/section/curraffrs/czech-power-giant-bolsters-arguments-for-60-year-lifespan-of-nuclear-plants, accessed
22 May 2018.
1258 - NIW, “Czech Republic”, 29 January 2016.

| 285

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 licensing in Europe of the Chinese Hualong design.1259 In March 2017, it was reported thatČEZ had held talks with Westinghouse, Rusatom Overseas, EDF, AREVA‑Mitsubishi, CGN
and Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power, with the companies expressing an interest in building
reactors in the Czech Republic.1260
In March 2018, the Standing Committee on Nuclear Energy published its options on the futureplans for financing nuclear new-build; these include:ɆɆ creating a new subsidiary of ČEZ to build the units with state backing;ɆɆ the purchase by the state of an existing part of ČEZ to build the plants; andɆɆ splitting ČEZ to transfer its nuclear plants to a state-owned company.1261
In May 2018, it was reported that the government had postponed a decision, saying it needed
more time to evaluate the impact on its budget and find out EU views on state aid for sucha project.1262 In January 2019, Ján Štuller was replaced by former ČEZ CEO Jaroslav Míl1263 ,followed by a government announcement in February 2019 that it was willing to give acontract to ČEZ to build further units at Dukovany, but without guaranteed purchase pricefor electricity. The proposed plan is expected to be finalized during 2019, with the opening oftenders in 2020 or 2021 and eventual start of construction not until 2029.1264
ČEZ is said to be increasingly nervous about the cost of construction of new units, with the
Financial Times reporting that building new reactors would cost at least 100 billion Czech
koruna (US$4.4 billion) each—or about a third of ČEZ’s market capitalization1265, somethingthat led to vocal concern among a group of minority shareholders of ČEZ.
The considerations around restructuring of ČEZ are wider than nuclear power and the
proposals are in line with similar developments of European utilities, such as RWE and E.ON
in Germany, where new companies have been formed to facilitate the further developmentof renewable energy and distribution activities, without being exposed to negative backlashfrom fossil‑fuel and nuclear activities.1266 In the meantime, ČEZ announced plans to prolong
the lifetime of the Temelín power plant to 60 years.1267

1259 - CGN, “CGN and CEZ Collaborate on Renewable and Nuclear Energy in the Czech Republic”, 31 March 2016,see http://en.cgnpc.com.cn/encgn/c100101/2016-03/31/content_4f5e26ac4a92404ba5ef27c3b6a156d3.shtml, accessed 29 April 2018.
1260 - WNN, “ČEZ aims to restore full nuclear potential”, 30 March 2017,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/C-CEZ-aims-to-restore-full-nuclear-potential-30031702.html, accessed 29 April 2018.
1261 - WNN, “Czech new build financing decision by mid-year”, 27 March 2018,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Czech-new-build-financing-decision-by-mid-year-2703187.html, accessed 14 August 2018.
1262 - Jan Lopatka, “Czechs put off decision on building new nuclear plants”, Reuters, 17 May 2018, see https://uk.reuters.com/article/
uk-czech-nuclearpower/czechs-put-off-decision-on-building-new-nuclear-plants-idUKKCN1II2SD, accessed 22 May 2018.
1263 - Prague Daily Monitor, “Jaroslav Míl appointed Special Envoy for Nuclear Energy”, 18 January 2019,see http://praguemonitor.com/2019/01/08/jaroslav-m%C3%Adl-appointed-special-envoy-nuclear-energy, accessed 4 May 2019.
1264 - NIW, “Czech PM Outlines Plans for Dukovany Expansion”, 22 February 2019.
1265 - James Shotter, “Prague weighs replacement options for nuclear plants”, Financial Times, 22 November 2018,see https://www.ft.com/content/26cced6c-c8be-11e8-86e6-19f5b7134d1c, accessed 14 April 2019.
1266 - Jan Lopatka, “UPDATE 1-Czech PM Babis to appoint experts to assess CEZ split”, Reuters, 7 February 2018,see https://af.reuters.com/article/commoditiesNews/idAFL8N1PX5HS, accessed 15 April 2018.
1267 - Chris Johnstone, “Czech power giant bolsters arguments for 60 year lifespan of nuclear plants”, Radio Praha, 11 May 2018,see http://www.radio.cz/en/section/curraffrs/czech-power-giant-bolsters-arguments-for-60-year-lifespan-of-nuclear-plants, accessed
22 May 2018.

| 286

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Hungary
Hungary has one nuclear power plant, at Paks, where four VVER 440-213 reactors provided
14.9 TWh or 50.6 percent of the country’s electricity in 2018. The nuclear share in the national
power mix is down from 53.6 percent in 2014. The reactors started operation in 1982–87
and have been the subject of engineering works to enable their operation for up to 50 years(compared to their initial 30‑year license). The first unit received permission to operate
for another 20 years in 2012, the second unit in 2014, the third in 2016 and the fourth inDecember 2017, enabling operation until the mid‑2030s.
In March 2009, the Parliament approved a government decision-in-principle to build additional
reactors and a tender was prepared according to European rules, while obliging the project
developers to establish a transparent international tender during the further downstream
tendering of the project. However, in 2014, the Paks II project was suddenly awarded to
Rosatom without reference to the public tender, with Russia financing 80 percent of the projectin loans.1268 In February 2017, during a visit to Hungary, Russia’s President Putin confirmedthat it was even willing to fund 100 percent of the estimated €12 billion (US$12.9 billion)
investment.1269 The Russian-Hungarian bilateral financing agreement proposed at the time
consists of a €10 billion (US$11.3 billion) loan to the Hungarian state, with repayment startingin 2026 whether or not the project will be online at that time. Hungary itself will have to invest
20 percent or €2 billion (US$2.3 billion) into the project.
In November 2016, the European Commission cleared the award of the contract to Rosatomof any infringement on its procurement rules. The European Commission accepted the
Hungarian justification for the decision that the “technical and safety requirements of the
project can only be met by one company”.1270 At the time, this seemed surprising given therange of reactor designs, such as the European Pressurized Water Reactor (EPR), the AP‑1000
and Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR) that were under construction or under licensing
review within the European Union. However, it subsequently came to light that the European
Commission actively assisted Hungary in finding the right loophole in EU public procurement
rules to get the green-light for the construction, and avoid having to have a tendering process,as an agreement had already been reached with the Russians.1271
As with other nuclear projects, the economic case continues to weaken. One report,
undertaken by Rothschild & Cie for the Prime Minister’s Office of the Hungarian Government
in September 2015, concluded that when making assumptions on the market price of power inthe order of €65/MWh (US$73/MWh), which they describe as in the “low end”,1272

1268 - Krisztina Than, “Special Report: Inside Hungary’s $10.8 billion nuclear deal with Russia”, Reuters, 30 March 2015,see https://www.reuters.com/article/us-russia-europe-hungary-specialreport-idUSKBN0MQ0MP20150330, accessed 4 May 2019.
1269 - NIW, “Briefs - Hungary”, 3 February 2017.
1270 - NEI, “EC agrees to Hungary’s Paks II, but funding decision still awaited”, 23 November 2016, see http://www.neimagazine.com/
news/newsec-agrees-to-hungarys-paks-ii-but-funding-decision-still-awaited-5677338, accessed 23 November 2018.
1271 - Jorge Valero, “Commission told Hungary how to win approval for Russia-backed nuclear plant”, Euractiv, 22 November 2017,see https://www.euractiv.com/section/energy/news/commission-told-hungary-how-to-win-approval-for-russia-backed-nuclear-plant/,
accessed 17 July 2019.
1272 - Rothschild & Cie, “Economic analysis for the Paks II nuclear power project—A rational investment case for Hungarian State
resources”, September 2015.

| 287

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

The operational revenues generated from the sale of the power output envisaged onbenchmarked load factor assumptions can be expected to generate sufficient cash flows tocover the operational costs of running the nuclear plant, as well as contributions towards
returning the invested capital.

This raises serious questions for the economics of the project as the operational costs are
relatively low for nuclear power plants and the report states that investment cost can only bepartially covered in their scenario, which make up a significant share of the cost of nuclear
electricity. Furthermore, the report has been criticized for taking “outdated and overstatedprice expectations” and that under more realistic assumptions the project is “uneconomic ineach tested scenario and would have to be significantly subsidized by Hungarian taxpayers”.1273
The market price for power (baseload future markets 2019) in July 2019 in Hungary is around€50/MWh (US$56/MWh).
In March 2017, the European Commission also approved the financial package for Paks II,
acknowledging that it was State Aid, but satisfied that the impacts on the market would be
kept to an acceptable level, if certain requirements were met, which included: any profits fromthe operation cannot be used to build or acquire additional generating capacity; Paks II mustbe legally separated from Paks I; and at least 30 percent of the power produced must be soldon the open market.1274 However, in February 2018 the Austrian Government challenged thevalidity of the decision, which is now under review by the European Court of Justice.1275 The
legal challenge has subsequently been supported by the Luxembourg Government.1276
The plant was granted an environmental license in September 2016, and in March 2017 the
Hungarian Atomic Energy Authority approved the site license for the new construction.1277
However, since then, there has been increasing concerns over the impact of hotter summers
on the cooling water availability due to higher water temperatures from the Danube river,
especially if both Paks I and II are in operation. Within the EIA process the solution to thisproblem was to reduce output from the plants when cooling water availability was limited,which would affect the economics of the project and the demand-supply grid balance.1278
Concerns have been raised over the suitability of Paks for siting nuclear power plants. Even
the national regulator notes that “seismic hazards have been underestimated in the siting anddesign of Paks NPP” and that further measures were taken to further protect the existing
reactors and to ensure that they meet seismic safety requirements.1279 Furthermore, documents
obtained by the Hungarian NGO Transparent are said to show that the site was “declared to be
non-compliant with IAEA [International Atomic Energy Agency] safety recommendations” as1273 - Candole Partners, “NPP Paks II: Economic feasibility, impact on competition and subsidy costs”, Prepared for Greenpeace, May
2016.
1274 - European Commission, “State Aid: Commission clears investment in construction of Paks II nuclear power plant in Hungary”,
6 March 2017, see http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-17-464_en.htm, accessed 29 April 2018.
1275 - WNN, “Austria takes EC to court over Paks decision”, 23 February 2018,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NP-Austria-takes-EC-to-court-over-Paks-decision-2302184.html, accessed 29 April 2018.
1276 - Eszter Zalan, “Luxembourg backs Austria against Hungarian nuclear plant”, EU Observer, 5 March 2018,see https://euobserver.com/energy/141202, accessed 29 April 2018.
1277 - NIW, “Briefs—Hungary”, 31 March 2017.
1278 - Gary Peach, “Five Years on, Hungary’s Paks Expansion Stumbles Along”, NIW, 8 February 2019.
1279 - Hungarian Atomic Energy Authority, “National Report of Hungary on the Targeted Safety Re-assessment of Paks Nuclear Power
Plant”, December 2011, see http://www.nubiki.hu/HUN_Nat_Rep_eng_signed.pdf, accessed 12 July 2019.

| 288

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

a tectonic fault and traces of seismic activities within the last 10,000 years have been found in
the surrounding area,1280 and potentially that it does not even meet Russian safety standards.1281
In August 2017, Hungary’s Foreign Minister said that construction work would begin at Paks II
in January 2018 and that nothing could stop the construction.1282 However, early 2018 reportssuggested that a construction permit was expected by mid‑20181283 with the project to becompleted in 2024–25. In June 2019, a ceremony was held with representatives of Rosatom
to mark the start of the erection of buildings at the site.1284 At the event, the director for theconstruction of Paks‑2, Alexander Khazin, said that “the building of the construction baseon Paks‑2 site means the beginning of the preparation of the construction of two new power
units, and from now on, the work at the site will be uninterrupted”.1285
As with other nuclear projects, suggested deadlines have come and gone, and in early 2019, it
is now suggested that the construction license won’t be signed until 2020 at the earliest.1286
In consequence, there are some reports that suggest that operation will not occur before
2027–2028 (rather than in 2026). This has led to an amendment of the loan agreement, withrepayment only starting once the two units are connected to the grid and electricity production
has begun.1287 Other reports put the startup even later, suggesting that 2032 is more likely, due
to significant cultural, technical and safety disputes.1288

Romania
Romania has one nuclear power plant at Cernavoda, where two Canadian-designed CANDU
reactors are in operation. In 2018—almost identical to 2016 and 2017—they provided 10.5 TWhor 17.2 percent of the country’s electricity, compared to 20.6 percent in 2009. The Cernavoda
reactors are amongst the top lifetime performing reactors, with Unit 2, the highest and Unit 1
in third place in the global league table of load factors. In 2018, their average load factor was
92.4 percent, one percentage point lower than in the previous year, but second only to Mexico’s
twin-reactor power plant.
1280 - Atlatszo, “Nem földrengésmentes a paksi atomerőmű telephelye: megszereztük a földtani kutatás eltitkolt eredményeit”,
July 2017 (in Hungarian), see https://atlatszo.hu/2017/07/10/nem-foldrengesmentes-a-paksi-atomeromu-telephelye-megszereztuk-afoldtani-kutatas-eltitkolt-eredmenyeit/, accessed 12 July 2019.
1281 - Benedek Javor, “Paks II. nem épülhetne meg Oroszországban az orosz szabályok szerint”, 7 November 2017 (in Hungarian),Jávor Benedek blogja, see http://javorbenedek.blog.hu/2017/11/07/paks_ii_nem_epulhetne_meg_oroszorszagban_az_orosz_szabalyok_
szerint, accessed 17 July 2019.
1282 - AFP, “2018 start for Russia-backed nuclear plant work”, 28 August 2017, see http://www.nuclearpowerdaily.com/reports/2018_
start_for_Russia-backed_nuclear_plant_work_Hungary_999.html, accessed 17 April 2018.
1283 - WNA, “Nuclear power in Hungary”, February 2018, see http://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/country-profiles/
countries-g-n/hungary.aspx, accessed 29 April 2018.
1284 - Rosatom, “The first construction and installation work launches at the construction base of the Paks-2 NPP (Hungary)”,
Press Release, 20 June 2019, see https://www.rosatom.ru/en/press-centre/news/the-first-construction-and-installation-work-launchesat-the-construction-base-of-the-paks-2-npp-hun/, accessed 21 June 2019.
1285 - Ibidem.
1286 - Gary Peach, “Five Years on, Hungary’s Paks Expansion Stumbles Along”, NIW, op. cit.
1287 - NEI, “Hungary and Russia renegotiate Paks-II loan”, 14 May 2019, see https://www.neimagazine.com/news/newshungary-andrussia-renegotiate-paks-ii-loan-7203945, accessed 15 May 2019.
1288 - Budapest Business Journal, “Paks II completion may be delayed until 2032, says report”, 22 November 2018,see https://bbj.hu/energy-environment/paks-ii-completion-may-be-delayed-until-2032-says-report_157482, accessed 12 July 2019.

| 289

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Between 1982 and 1987, Romania started construction on five Canadian-designed reactors.
Unit 1 was completed in 1996, and Unit 2 started up in 2007, respectively 14 and 24 years after
construction started. The two units were partly funded by the Canadian Export Development
Corporation, the second also partly by Euratom. As with other CANDU reactors, major
refurbishment will be needed in the reactors; it is anticipated that this will occur in Unit 1
during 2026–28 and will cost €1.2–1.5 billion (US$1.4–1.7 billion).1289
Various foreign companies have been involved in the attempts to revive the construction ofUnits 3, 4 and 5. The penultimate involved Enel, ČEZ, GDF SUEZ (now Engie), RWE, Iberdrola
and ArcelorMittal, which established a company with the State nuclear corporation Societatea
Nationala Nuclearelectrica (SNN), called EnergoNuclear in 2008. However, one by one theforeign companies pulled out.1290
The latest attempt was launched in cooperation with China General Nuclear Power
Corporation (CGN), which signed a letter of intent in November 2013 with SNN to complete
the projects in 2019 and 2020. This was followed in November 2015, with the signing ofa Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Nuclearelectrica and CGN for theconstruction, operation and decommissioning of Units 3 and 4. The MoU also included
agreements on investments, the articles of incorporation of a new project company, thestructuring of the project’s financing, and remarkably, CGN was to be the majority owner ofthe project with at least 51 percent of the shares.1291 In January 2016, the Romania Government
formally expressed support for the project and outlined the policies and measures that it would
introduce to support it; this included energy market reform, changes to the electricity tariff,
commitments on state guarantees and financial incentive policies. The cost of the completionof two reactors (720 MW each) was expected to be US$7.8 billion.1292
During 2016 and 2017, negotiations between CGN and Nuclearelectrica were said to be ongoing,
although deadlines for construction and financing agreements have continually been extended.
However, by late 2017, the Government admitted that negotiations needed to be restarted, witha hope that a binding investment agreement would be signed by February or March 2018,1293 adeadline which has been missed. In January 2019, the Romanian and Chinese partners agreed
a Contract for Difference set-up (similar to the Hinkley Point C deal in the U.K.) to pave theway for the establishment of a joint company to complete the two units.1294

1289 - Romania Insider, “Romanian nuclear power plant reactor refurbishment to cost EUR 1.2-1.5 bln”, 2 April 2018,see https://www.romania-insider.com/nuclear-power-plant-reactor-refurbishment-cost/, accessed 3 April 2018.
1290 - WNA, “Nuclear Power in Romania”, October 2017,see http://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/country-profiles/countries-o-s/romania.aspx, accessed 29 April 2018.
1291 - WNN, “Romania and China seal Cernavoda agreement”, 19 November 2015,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Romania-and-China-seal-Cernavoda-agreement-10111501.html, accessed 29 April 2017.
1292 - WNN, “Romania expresses support for China’s role at Cernavoda”, 25 January 2016, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/
NN-Romania-expresses-support-for-China-role-at-Cernavoda-25011601.html, accessed 20 April 2017.
1293 - Phil Chaffee, “Romania: Can SNN end stalemate with CGN over Cernavoda ?”, NIW, 22 September 2017.
1294 - Romania Insider, “Romanian nuclear power plant reactor refurbishment to cost EUR 1.2-1.5 bln”, 2 April 2018, Op. cit.

| 290

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Slovakia
In Slovakia, the state utility Slovenské Elektrárne (SE) operates two nuclear sites, Jaslovské
Bohunice, which houses two VVER440 units, and Mochovce, which has two similar reactors. In
2018, their production remained stable at 13.8 TWh or 55 percent of the country’s electricity—
it passed Ukraine again—and is the second highest share in the world behind France. The loadfactors are stable on a high level with an average of 88.3 percent in 2018, just as in the previous
year.
In October 2004, the Italian national utility ENEL (Ente Nazionale per l’energia elettrica)
acquired a 66 percent stake in SE and, as part of its bid, proposed to invest nearly €2 billion(US$2.7 billion) in new nuclear generating capacity, including completion of the third andfourth blocks of Mochovce, whose construction originally began in January 1985. Towards
the end of 2014, ENEL announced that it was seeking to sell its share in SE and had received
a number of non-binding bids. In December 2015, it was announced that EPH (Energeticky
a Prumyslovy Holding) was the winner of the bid, with a preliminary price of €750 million(US$812 million). Under the deal, ENEL got €150 million (US$171 million) in the first stage, inwhich EPH received a share of 33 percent in the company, the remaining share and final priceto be agreed one year after Mochovce is completed.1295
In February 2007, SE had announced that it was proceeding with the construction of
Mochovce‑3 and ‑4 and that ENEL had now agreed to invest €1.8 billion (US$20072.6 billion).
According to the International Atomic Energy Agency’s Power Reactor Information
System (PRIS), construction restarted in June 2009, and, at the time, the units were
expected to generate power in 2012 and 2013 respectively.1296 However, the project was besetwith problems, and by May 2016, the estimate for the total costs of completion had risen to€5.1 billion (US$5.72016 billion), with completion at the end of 2016/early 2017.1297 However,in March 2017, SE announced a considerable further delay in the project, with operation
expected only at the end of 2018 and 2019 for Units 1 and 2 respectively. This is an additional
two years of construction, while the officially expected cost increase is only €300 million(US$333 million)1298. According to SE, by December 2018, Unit 3 was over 98 percent completeand Unit 4 about 86.5 percent.1299 As of early 2018, completion of the projects was still expected
at the end of 2018 and 2019 respectively.1300 This schedule would have meant that the reactors
were six years behind the 2009 schedule, when construction restarted, with an increase inbudget from then €2.8 billion to €5.4 billion (US$3.2 bn to US$6.1 bn). In June 2018, the Slovak
Prime Minister himself raised doubts if the latest schedule would be met, as he stated that “a1295 - Tatiana Jancarikova, Jan Lopatka, “Enel sells stake in Slovak power group, including nuclear plant, to EPH”, Reuters,
18 December 2015, see https://www.reuters.com/article/slovakia-enel-eph/enel-sells-stake-in-slovak-power-group-including-nuclearplant-to-eph-idUSL8N14657L20151218, accessed 29 April 2018.
1296 - ENEL, “ENEL Starts Site Works at Mochovce 3–4”, Press release, 3 November 2008,
see https://servizi.enel.it/eWCM/salastampa/comunicati_eng/1594888-1_PDF-1.pdf, accessed 29 April 2018.
1297 - Spravy Pravda, “Ďalšie peniaze na Mochovce? Žiga nemá oficiálnu informáciu”, 5 May 2016 (in Slovak), see http://spravy.pravda.
sk/ekonomika/clanok/392783-dalsie-peniaze-na-mochovce-ziga-nema-oficialnu-informaciu/, accessed 29 April 2018.
1298 - WNN, “Slovak utility increases Mochovce expansion budget”, 31 March 2017,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Slovak-utility-increases-Mochovce-expansion-budget-31031701.html, accessed 29 April 2018.
1299 - SE, “Mochovce 3 and 4 Project Completion”, Undated, see https://www.seas.sk/mochovce-3-4-npp, accessed 6 July 2019.
1300 - NIW, “Slovakia”, 16 February 2018.

| 291

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

number of problems arose during construction, and even now this makes us doubt whether
this year’s deadline for the third unit is realistic.”1301
In April 2019, Mochovce-3 completed “hot testing” in preparation for fuel loading in thesummer, although the regulatory process could take eight months. The new delay is reported
to add an estimated €270 million (US$305 million) to the cost of the Mochovce‑3 and ‑4
project, representing a 5 percent increase in costs, and bringing total costs to €5.4 billion(US$6.1 billion).1302 In June 2019 TVEL Fuel Company, part of Rosatom, agreed to fuel the
Slovakian reactors for the next five years, with the possibility of a contract extension to 2030.1303
On 15 April 2019, the Slovak anti-corruption police raided several SE offices, including thoseat Mochovce, and arrested on corruption charges the former CEO of Slovenské Elektrárne,Paolo Ruzzini, and Nicola Cotugno, former Mochovce director and Ruzzini’s successor at SE,
both involved in the privatization of SE to ENEL in 2004 and responsible for the restart of the
Mochovce‑3 and ‑4 construction.1304 At the time of writing, it remains unclear whether theseinvestigations will have repercussions on the construction timetable of Mochovce‑3 and ‑4.
In May 2019, CEO of SE Branislav Strycek announced that startup would be delayed again to
March 2020, an optimistic variant being November 2019.1305 Unit 4 startup is now expected in
2021.1306
In addition to the delays and cost overruns, concerns have been raised about the state of
the power market, with power prices currently at €30/MWh (US$33/MWh) and electricity
demand following the sluggish economy. It is expected that, if and when the Mochovce units
are completed, their capacity will mainly be used for export, so given the low electricity prices
in the European market, the chance that SE will recover their ever-increasing investment
seems slim.
The Slovak state-owned utility JAVYS (Jadrová A VYrad’ovacia Spoločnost’) and the Czech
utility ČEZ in 2009 started a joint venture JESS (Jadrová Energetická Spoločnosť Slovenska,a.s.) to construct new nuclear capacity in Jaslovské Bohunice. JAVYS is currently responsible
for the decommissioning at Jaslovské Bohunice of the A1 reactor and the two V1 reactors,
as well as for Slovakia’s radioactive waste management. The so-called Bohunice NJZ (Nová
Jadrová Zdroj) 1200 MW new-build project is proposed to be completed before 2025 at a cost of€4–6 billion (US$4.5–6.8 billion). JAVYS owns 51 percent of the shares and ČEZ 49 percent. ČEZsought in 2013 to sell this stake to Russian Rosatom, but negotiations failed in March 2014.1307
1301 - NIW, “Slovakia: Are Mochovce’s Headaches Over ?”, 8 June 2018.
1302 - WNN, “Mochovce 3 completes commissioning test”, 16 April 2019, see https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Mochovce3-completes-commissioning-test, accessed 18 April 2019.
1303 - Claudia Patriciolo, “Rosatom to supply fuel for Slovakia’s nuclear power plants”, Emerging Europe, 6 June 2019,see https://emerging-europe.com/news/rosatom-to-supply-fuel-for-slovakias-nuclear-power-plants/, accessed 6 July 2019.
1304 - TASR, “NAKA na letisku zadržala exšéfa Slovenských elektrární. Preverujú podozrenia týkajúce sa Mochoviec”, Finweb,
15 April 2019 (in Slovak), see https://finweb.hnonline.sk/ekonomika/1924600-naka-na-letisku-zadrzala-exsefa-slovenskych-elektrarnipreveruju-podozrenia-tykajuce-sa-mochoviec, accessed 4 May 2019.
1305 - Ekonomika, “Na dostavbu Mochoviec sa prídu pozrieť medzinárodní experti”, 29 May 2019 (in Slovak),see https://ekonomika.sme.sk/c/22132932/na-dostavbu-mochoviec-sa-pozru-medzinarodni-experti.html, accessed 2 June 2019.
1306 - The Slovak Spectator, “International experts to check the completion of the Mochovce plant”, 29 May 2019,see https://spectator.sme.sk/c/22133351/international-experts-to-check-the-completion-of-the-mochovce-plant.html, accessed 2 June 2019.
1307 - Chris Johnstone, “ČEZ left with problematic Slovak nuclear joint venture after Rosatom talks die”, Radio Praha, 7 March 2014,see http://www.radio.cz/en/section/business/cez-left-with-problematic-slovak-nuclear-joint-venture-after-rosatom-talks-die, accessed
29 April 2018.

| 292

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Also later negotiations with China were fruitless. The Slovak Environment Ministry approved
the environmental impact assessment report in April 2016, with construction scheduled to
begin by 2021.1308 The EIA process for a given project is legally valid for seven years, i.e. until
2023. In May 2019, Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini said that the project could proceed “wheneconomic parameters and the situation on the energy market permit”.1309

Slovenia
Slovenia jointly owns the Krško nuclear power plant with Croatia—a 696‑MW Westinghouse
Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR). In 2018, it provided 5.5 TWh or 35.9 percent of Slovenia’s
electricity, down from 6.0 TWh or 39.1 percent in 2017, and below the maximum of 42.4 percent
in 2005. The load factor of Krško was the 2nd highest in the world in 2017, averaged 90.7 percent
in 2018, down from 98.7 percent in 2017, but still one of only four countries whose load factor
exceeded 90 percent that year.
The reactor was started in 1981 with an initial operational life of 40 years. In July 2015, anInter-State Commission agreed to extend the plant’s operational life to 60 years, so thatwould continue until 2043, as well as to construct a dry storage facility for the spent fuel.1310
In May 2016, a spokeswoman for the operator NEK (Nuklearna Elektrarna Krško) said: “Thelifespan of Krško has been extended providing that the plant passes a security check every
10 years with the next checks due in 2023 and 2033.”1311 In 2018, the plant announced around€50 million worth of investment (around US$201857 million) being planned for 2019, mostly forcompleting safety upgrades and replacing obsolete equipment.1312
In January 2010, an application was made by the nuclear operator to the Ministry of Economy
to build an additional unit, but no advancement of the project has been made since.

1308 - Energia, “Nová atómka v Bohuniciach má zelenú od MŽP”, 19 April 2017 (in Slovak),see http://energia.sk/dolezite/jadrova-energia/nova-atomka-v-bohuniciach-ma-zelenu-od-mzp/19850/, accessed 29 April 2018.
1309 - Martin Dargaj, “Premiér Pellegrini oživil projekt novej jadrovej elektrárne v Bohuniciach”, vEnergetike.sk, WebNoviny,
2 May 2019, see https://venergetike.sk/premier-pellegrini-ozivil-projekt-novej-jadrovej-elektrarne-v-bohuniciach/, accessed
16 June 2019.
1310 - WNN, “Partners agree on life extension for Krsko”, 21 July 2015, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/C-Partners-agree-onlife-extension-for-Krsko-2107154.html, accessed 20 April 2017.
1311 - NEI, “Life Extension for Slovenia’s Krslo NPP”, 6 May 2016, see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newslife-extension-forslovenias-krslo-npp-4885976/, accessed 1 July 2018.
1312 - Slovenia Times, “Krško nuclear plant operating efficiently, upgrades planned”, 27 November 2018,see http://www.sloveniatimes.com/krsko-nuclear-plant-operating-efficiently-security-upgrade-on-track, accessed 18 April 2019.

| 293

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

FORMER SOVIET UNION
Armenia
Armenia has one remaining reactor at the Medzamor (also known as Metsamor) nuclear power
plant, situated within 30 kilometers of the capital Yerevan. Armenian‑2 provided 1.9 TWh or
25.6 percent of the country’s electricity in 2018, a significant drop from 2017 with 2.4 TWh
and 32.5 percent, and significantly below the maximum nuclear share of 45 percent in 2009.
Armenia has the lowest lifetime load factor of any nuclear country in the world, averaging
53.4 percent; in 2018, the load factor was 55.2 percent. Output will fall in 2019, as the reactor
is expected to be closed for most of the second half of the year for refurbishment and upgrade.
The reactor started generating electricity in January 1980 and is a first-generation, Sovietdesigned VVER 440‑230. In December 1988, Armenia suffered a major earthquake that killedsome 25,000 people and led to the rapid closure of its two reactors in March 1989. During theearly 1990s and following the collapse of the former Soviet Union, a territorial dispute between
Armenia and Azerbaijan resulted in an energy blockade that led to significant power shortages.
This led to the government’s decision in 1993 to re-open unit 2 at Medzamor. In October 2012,
the Armenian Government announced that it would operate the Medzamor unit until 2026.
The extension was made possible by a Russian loan of US$270 million and a US$30 million
grant.1313 In 2011, the Armenian Nuclear Regulatory Authority granted the reactor an extensionof its operating license until 2021, subject to annual safety demonstrations since 2016.1314
In June 2016, the European Nuclear Safety Regulators Group (ENSREG) issued the “EU Peer
Review Report of the Armenian Stress Tests.”1315 The report confirms numerous safety-related
problems. In September 2017, the European Commission published its proposed partnershipagreement with Armenia, which included recommendations for co-operation on “the closureand safe decommissioning of Medzamor nuclear power plant and the early adoption of a roadmap or action plan to that effect.”1316
In late 2018 the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), at request of the Armenia
Government, undertook a Safety Aspects Long-Term Operational review mission. The
Government has said it will make the report public,1317 but as of mid‑2019 had not done so.

1313 - NEI, “Armenian NPP to close for refurb”, 21 March 2019, see https://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsarmenian-npp-to-closefor-refurb-7054023/, accessed 19 April 2019.
1314 - IAEA, “IAEA Concludes Long-Term Operational Safety Review at Armenia’s Nuclear Power Plant”, Press Release,
10 December 2018, see https://www.iaea.org/newscenter/pressreleases/iaea-concludes-long-term-operational-safety-review-atarmenias-nuclear-power-plant, accessed 12 May 2019.
1315 - ENSREG, “EU Peer Review Report of the Armenian Stress Tests”, European Nuclear Safety Regulators Group, June 2016,see http://www.ensreg.eu/sites/default/files/attachments/2016-07-20_4259241_armenia_stress_tests_report-_ensreg_template_final.
pdf, accessed 1 May 2018.
1316 - European Commission, “Annex 1 to the Joint Proposal for a Council Decision on the conclusion, on behalf of the European
Union, of the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement between the European Union and the European Atomic Energy
Community and their Member States, of the one part and the Republic of Armenia, of the other part”, Council of the European Union,
Interistitutional File 2017/0238 (NLE), 25 September 2017, see https://eeas.europa.eu/sites/eeas/files/eu-armenia_comprehensive_and_enhanced_partnership_agreement_cepa.pdf, accessed 1 May 2018.
1317 - IAEA, “IAEA Concludes Long-Term Operational Safety Review at Armenia’s Nuclear Power Plant”, 2018, op. cit.

| 294

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

The Armenia Government stated that “it is impossible to shut down the nuclear power plant
without launching an alternative facility—in our case another nuclear reactor.”1318
Early June 2019, Armenia’s reactor was shut down for substantial repair and upgrade. The
outage is scheduled to last for 110 days. In March 2019, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan
confirmed that there were no plans to close Medzamor and that “We will extend the lifecycle ofthe nuclear power station as long as possible, although it is clear that it cannot work forever.”1319
For years, Armenia has been negotiating with Russia for the construction of a new
1000 MW unit and signed an intergovernmental agreement to that effect in August 2010. In
March 2014, the energy minister admitted that it was having difficulty in attracting funds
to start construction.1320 Since then little progress appears to have been made with no clear
choice on future technologies, with some proposing the construction of Small Modular
Reactors (SMRs).1321
Some decisionmakers in the country started questioning the nuclear option, as in October 2017,
then Justice Minister Davit Harutiunian stated: “Just imagine a possibility that it turns out
tomorrow that modern technologies can generate the same amount of energy without a nuclear
plant and that nuclear energy… is much more expensive for consumers. Which path should we
opt for? Of course, modern technologies.”1322

RussiaIn 2018, nuclear energy contributed 17.9 percent to the country’s electricity mix with a record
production of 191.34 TWh. Rosatom is hoping to further increase production in the coming
years, with output in 2019 expected to reach 214 TWh.1323 Russia had shown a marked increase
in its average load factor in recent years but slipped again in 2018 to 77.5 percent compared to
80 percent in 2017 and an average lifetime load factor of 66.6 percent.
The past 18 months have been mixed for the Russian nuclear industry. On the one hand there
was the connection to the grid of the Rostov-4 reactor in February 2018—35 years after its
construction was first started1324—and of the first unit at the Leningrad-II power station in
March 2018. Fuel loading of a two‑reactor floating nuclear power plant was completed in
October 2018. Akademik Lomonosov is expected to be towed to its permanent location in

1318 - Arka News Agency, “Deputy Minister Says There Is Alternative to Shutting down Armenian Nuclear Power Plant”, 11 April 2018.
1319 - NEI, “Armenian NPP to Close for Refurb”, 21 March 2019, op. cit.
1320 - BNE Intellinews, “Armenia denies plans to abandon nuclear power plant project”, 28 March 2014, see http://www.intellinews.
com/armenia-denies-plans-to-abandon-nuclear-power-plant-project-500000301/?archive=bne, accessed 1 May 2018.
1321 - Arka News Agency, “Minister: Armenia not to give up the idea of building new nuclear power plant”, 20 October 2017,see http://arka.am/en/news/technology/minister_armenia_not_to_give_up_the_idea_of_building_new_nuclear_power_plant/,
accessed 1 May 2018.
1322 - Sargis Harutyunyan “Yerevan May Scrap Plans For New Nuclear Plant”, Azututyun.am, 17 October 2017,see https://www.azatutyun.am/a/28799958.html, accessed 1 May 2018.
1323 - NEI, “Russia plant to boost nuclear power generation”, 18 April 2017,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsrussia-plans-to-boost-nuclear-power-generation-5789303/, accessed 25 April 2017.
1324 - See WNISR, “The construction Saga of Rostov Nuclear Reactors 3 and 4”, 14 February 2018,see https://www.worldnuclearreport.org/The-Construction-Saga-of-Rostov-Reactors-3-and-4.html, accessed 14 August 2018.

| 295

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

the Chukotka region in the summer of 2019.1325 Then in April 2019, the second unit at the
Novovoronezh‑II power plant was given regulatory approval and grid connection occurred inMay, with commercial operation expected by the end of the year.1326
While the first unit at Leningrad-I station, a Chernobyl-type RBMK, was closed in
December 2018, decommissioning of an 11 MW reactor at Bilibino—which had remained shut
down since March 2018—was approved in early 2019. Consequently, as of July 2019, there are
36 reactors operating in the Russian Federation.
In addition to the small Akademik Lomonosov units, three large reactors remain underconstruction, Leningrad 2‑2 as well as Kursk 2‑1 and 2-2, whose construction started
respectively in April 2010, in April 2018 and in April 2019.
The “floating reactors” (Akademik Lomonosov‑1 and ‑2), are nominally 32 Mwe each. These
were ordered in February 2009 and were expected to be delivered to the customer at the endof 2012.1327 Critics of the project point out that the risk of accidents on a floating nuclear plantis greatly increased because they are even more susceptible to the elements, subject to threatsof piracy, and if deployed widely would increase the risks of nuclear material proliferation.1328
Two VVER-1200 MW units were being built at the Leningrad nuclear power plant, at Sosnovy
Bor, near St. Petersburg. At the time of ordering, the reactors were initially expected to start up
in 2013 and 2016 respectively. Unit 1 was connected to the grid in March 2018,1329 and reachedcommercial operation in October 2018.1330 In August 2018, the turbine equipment was installed
on Unit 2,1331 with commercial operation expected in February 2022.1332
Construction started at the Baltic-1 unit, a 1109 MW VVER-491 reactor, in February 2012.
However, construction was suspended in June 2013 for a variety of reasons, including
recognition of the limited market for the electricity. Accordingly, WNISR pulled the project
off the construction listing. Despite no indication that construction has restarted, the projectremains “under construction” in International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) statistics.
In June 2016, the Russian regulator Rostechnadzor granted a construction license for
Kursk 2‑1. It was suggested in 2017 that 16.5 billion rubles (US$274 million) were allocated1325 - WNN, “First reactor on Russia’s floating plant starts up”, 5 November 2018, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/First-reactor-on-Russia-s-floating-plant-starts-up, accessed 19 April 2019. In August 2019, the Akademik Lomonosov was reported to
be towed to the port of Pevek on the Chukotka Peninsula in the east Arctic.
1326 - WNN, “Novovoronezh II-2 starts pilot operation”, 4 June 2019,see http://world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Novovoronezh-II-2-starts-pilot-operation, accessed 9 June 2019.
1327 - NEI, “KLT-40S nuclear barge project still afloat”, 9 March 2010.
1328 - Martin Matishak, “Floating Nuclear Reactors Could Fall Prey to Terrorists, Experts Say”, Nuclear Threat Initiative,
13 August 2010, see http://www.nti.org/gsn/article/floating-nuclear-reactors-could-fall-prey-to-terrorists-experts-say/, accessed
1 May 2018.
1329 - Rosatom, “Leningrad NPP: Unit 1 with VVER-1200 connected to the national grid”, (Press Release), 12 March 2018, see http://
www.rosatom.ru/en/press-centre/news/leningrad-npp-unit-1-with-vver-1200-connected-to-the-national-grid/, accessed 30 April 2018.
1330 - Rosatom, “Leningrad-II unit 1 enters final stage of commissioning”, Press Release, 27 March 2018,see http://rosatom.ru/en/press-centre/news/leningrad-ii-unit-1-enters-final-stage-of-commissioning/, accessed 2 April 2018.
1331 - WNN, “Turbine equipment installed at Leningrad II-2”, 7 August 2018,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Turbine-equipment-installed-at-Leningrad-II-2, accessed 19 April 2019.
1332 - WNA, “Nuclear Power in Russia”, May 2019, see http://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/country-profiles/countrieso-s/russia-nuclear-power.aspx, accessed 9 June 2019.

| 296

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

for construction,1333 with completion expected in 2022.1334 At construction start in April 2018,
completion was rescheduled to late 2023.1335 Construction was launched at Kursk 2‑2 a year
later.1336 This could be a particularly important project, as it would be the first of the latest
Russian design, the VVER‑TOI (VVER‑V‑510), which is said to be a 1200 MW, Generation‑III+
design and destined for export.
In August 2016, a Government decree called for the construction of an additional 11 reactors by
2030, including two new fast breeder reactors, a VVER‑600 at Kola and seven new VVER‑TOI
units at Kola, Smolensk, Nizhny Novgorod, Kostrom and Tatar.1337 However, in early 2017 theCEO of Rosatom said that the government would end state support for the construction of
new nuclear units in 2020 and therefore any new reactors would have to have to be financed
primarily via commercial nuclear energy projects on the international market.1338 Even before
this date, the budget for construction of new reactors was expected to be in 2018, 2019 and2020, a modest 15.7 billion rubles (US$250 million), 16.6 billion rubles (US$260 million)and 17.7 billion rubles (US$280 million) respectively,1339 which may explain the lack of new
construction in Russia beyond Kursk II.
Rosatom has reluctantly provisionally agreed to postpone by one year the launch of its next two
VVERs, so that the wholesale market can more easily absorb another round of price increases. A
previously agreed arrangement to encourage investment in power generation enables investors
to earn a 10.5 percent return over a 20‑year period. This can have a significant impact on thelocal electricity market. Following the completion of the 880 MW fast reactor in the Urals anda VVER‑1200 in southern Russia, the wholesale price of electricity increased by 15–20 percent
compared to the period prior to commissioning the two units. The Energy Consumers
Association has estimated on average the electricity tariff would increase by 18 percent per
year if the next four reactors under construction were completed by the end of the decade.1340
Russia has closed eight power generating reactors: Obninsk‑1, Beloyarsk‑1 and ‑2, Bilibino‑1,
Leningrad 1‑1 and Novovoronezh 1‑3. The average age of the Russian reactor fleet is now
29.1 years, with two thirds being 31 years or more, of which 8 over 40 (see Figure 58). Therefore,a key issue for the industry is how to manage its aging units.

1333 - Tatiana Kanunnikova, “Rosenergoatom invests $274m in building Kursk NPP this year”, Construction.RU, 12 January 2017,see http://russianconstruction.com/news-1/26133-rosenergoatom-invests-274m-in-building-kursk-npp-this-year.html, accessed
1 May 2018.
1334 - NIW, “Briefs - Russia”, 10 July 2017.
1335 - NEI, “Russia to start building Kursk-II in first half of 2018”, 23 January 2018,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsrussia-to-start-building-kursk-ii-in-first-half-of-2018-6033221/, accessed 1 May 2018.
1336 - Rosenergoatom, “The construction of unit 2 of Kursk NPP-2 has begun”, Press Release, Atominfo.ru, 15 April 2019,see http://atominfo.ru/newsy/z0529.htm, accessed 19 April 2019.
1337 - WNN, “Russia to build 11 new nuclear reactors by 2030”, 10 August 2016,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NP-Russia-to-build-11-new-nuclear-reactors-by-2030-10081602.html, accessed 1 May 2018.
1338 - WNA, “Nuclear Power in Russia”, May 2019.
1339 - NIW, “Briefs—Russia”, 22 September 2017.
1340 - Gary Peach, “Newbuild Rollout Impacts Large Energy Users”, NIW, 2 March 2018.

| 297

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 298

Figure 58 | Age Distribution of the Russian Nuclear Fleet

Age of Russian Nuclear Fleet
as of 1 July 2019

Reactor Age

15

0–10 Years
11–20 Years
21–30 Years
31–40 Years
41 Years and Over3
2

8

36 Reactors
Mean Age29.1 Years

8

50 Number of Reactors
by Age Class© WNISR - Mycle Schneider Consulting

Sources: WNISR, with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

There are mainly three classes of reactors in operation: the RBMK (a graphite-moderated reactorof the Chernobyl type), the VVER440, and the VVER1000. Designed for an operational lifetimeof 30 years, both the RBMKs and VVER440s have been granted 15‑year lifetime extensions toenable them to operate for 45 years, although there are plans to extend this in some cases
to 60 years1341, while the VVER1000s are expected to work for up to 50 years. Consequently,
the closure of Leningrad 1‑1 is potentially a significant event, as, after 46 years of operation,
it would indicate that 60‑year operational life is beyond the RMBKs, and could lead to theclosure of 10 of the remaining 13 in this class in the next decade. According to the Norwegian
NGO Bellona, life extensions have been granted without the necessary environmental impact
assessments, which has both led to protests and made the life extensions “something of a legal
grey area”.1342
In December 2018, Rosatom’s scientific-technical council adopted, but did not publish, a very
long-term strategy (until 2100) that envisions the broad trajectory of Russia’s nuclear industry
development, with the continuation of the VVERs, but the foundation of the future program
will be fast reactors with a closed fuel cycle. The strategy keeps open the debate on the typeof fast reactor, with either lead‑ or sodium‑cooled reactors still in the mix, depending on theirpractical performance.
Russia is an aggressive exporter of nuclear power, with, according to Rosatom, 36 separate
projects including; Bangladesh (2 reactors at Rooppur); Belarus (2 reactors at Ostrovets); China(four reactors, two units at Tianwan, and two in the Liaoning province); Egypt (4 reactors at
El Dabaa); Finland (1 reactor at Hanhikivi); Hungary (2 reactors at Paks); India (4 reactors at
Kudankulam); Turkey (4 reactors at Akkuyu).1343 But as of early 2019, there were only sevenreactors actually under construction. According to environmental organization Ecodefense,
actual investment in these projects totals US$36 billion— well short of the US$133 billion order1341 - NEI, “Russia permanently closes Novovoronezh 3”, 4 January 2017,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsrussia-permanently-closes-novovoronezh-3-5709099/, accessed 1 May 2018.
1342 - Nils Bohmer, et.al., “Russian nuclear power–2017”, Bellona, 30 May 2017,see http://network.bellona.org/content/uploads/sites/3/2017/05/2017-Russian-nuclear-power-NO-ISBN.pdf, accessed 1 May 2018.
1343 - Rosatom, “Projects”, undated, see http://www.rosatom.ru/en/investors/projects/, accessed 9 June 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 book boasted by the industry.1344 However, while many other projects are still to be officiallylaunched and therefore may not come to fruition, the order book currently still makes Rosatom
the world’s largest exporter. Rosatom has identified a target of securing a portfolio of overseas
orders for 10 years ahead in the amount of at least US$130 billion.1345
The relative success of Russia’s export drive in a niche market of state-funded projects is notprimarily due to the technology but to promised access to cheap financing that accompanies
the deals. Therefore, the poor economic situation in Russia and the rise of national developersfrom China with equal access to capital are likely to undermine Rosatom’s dominance of thevery limited export opportunities.

UkraineUkraine has 15 operating reactors, two of the VVER440 design and the rest VVER1000s.
They provided 79.5 TWh or 53 percent of power generation in the country in 2018. Twelve outof the Ukraine’s 15 reactors were completed in the late 1970s and 1980s and had an original
design lifetime of thirty years. Ukraine has carried out a safety upgrade program for all of
its 15 reactors, at an estimated cost of €1.45 billion (US$1.62 billion) in total, of which theEuropean Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and EURATOM will contribute€600 million between them (US$670 million). The nuclear operator has proposed to extend
lifetimes of some of the reactors for another 20 years. The proposal was accepted and now
constitutes a core element of the nuclear strategy approved by the government. The decision
for lifetime extension has resulted in controversy around the EBRD and EURATOM loans,because these did not foresee any lifetime extension.
As of mid-2019, three nuclear reactors (two VVER 440s and one VVER 1000) at Rovno (alsospelled Rivne) have been granted a lifetime extension of 20 years,1346 two units at South
Ukraine for 10 years, and four units at Zaporizhzhya power plant for 10 years.1347 Internationalfirms, including Westinghouse1348 and Toshiba,1349 are to upgrade and extend the lifetimes of
the Ukrainian reactors.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) completed a Pre‑SALTO (Safety Aspects ofLong-Term Operation) peer review mission at the third unit at the South Ukraine plant inApril 2018 and concluded that the “plant has made progress in the field of ageing management”
but noted that it had only “initiated many activities to prepare for safe long term operation”.

1344 - Vladimir Slivyak, “Dreams and realities of the Russian reactor export”, EcoDefense, March 2019.
1345 - TASS, “Rosatom’s foreign orders portfolio remains at $ 130-140 billion”, Atominfo.ru, 18 April 2019,see http://atominfo.ru/newsy/z0536.htm, accessed 19 April 2019.
1346 - NEI, “Life extension for Ukraine’s Rovno 3”, 23 July 2018,see https://www.neimagazine.com/news/newslife-extension-for-ukraines-rovno-3-6258731/, accessed 19 April 2019.
1347 - NEI, “Life extension for Ukraine’s Zaporozhye 4”, 16 October 2018,see https://www.neimagazine.com/news/newslife-extension-for-ukraines-zaporozhye-4-6803714/, accessed 19 April 2019.
1348 - Gary Peach, “Ukraine”, NIW, 15 September 2017.
1349 - NEI, “Ukraine plans nuclear expansion”, 26 October 2017,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsukraine-plans-nuclear-expansion-5957453/, accessed 1 May 2018.

| 299

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

The initial IAEA report also concluded: “The plant has developed a catalogue of operational
defects in heat exchanging tubes in the steam generators”.1350
The lifetime extension of Rivne‑1 and ‑2 is part of an ongoing controversy within the Espoo
Convention on transboundary Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), which concluded
that Ukraine was in non-compliance for not executing an EIA before its decision to prolong
the lifetime of these VVER440 reactors beyond their original technical lifetime of 30 years.1351
Environmental groups in Ukraine have called upon European institutions to stop the support
for “risky” life extension programs.1352 The intermediary session of the Meeting of the Parties
to the Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context (Espoo
Convention) adopted a decision in February 2019 that “despite the positive steps taken,
Ukraine remains in non-compliance with its obligations under the Convention” in regard to
the Rivne life-extension projects.1353 In April 2017, the Ukrainian Ministry of Environment
had sent official notification to neighboring countries on the start of the EIA for the lifetime
extension of South Ukraine and at Zaporizhzhya.1354
Two reactors, Khmelnitsky-3 and -4, are officially under construction, but WNISR
pulled them from the list. Building work started in 1986 and 1987 but stopped in 1990. In
February 2011, Russia and Ukraine signed an intergovernmental agreement to complete thereactors, and in 2012, the Ukrainian Parliament adopted legislation to create a framework
to finance the project, with 80 percent of the funds to be coming from Russia. However, in
September 2015, the Ukrainian Parliament voted to cancel the project, with Deputy Energy
Minister Alexander Svetelik blaming Russia for “failing to fulfill the obligation under the deal”,
and saying that an “alternative partner” would be sought.1355 In January 2017, the Russian
Government confirmed that the 2011 agreement on the completion of the units had beencancelled.1356
Subsequently, Skoda JS has been appointed as the main supplier for the completion of thereactors and an EIA procedure has begun.1357 As part of the Espoo Convention, in the spring of
2019, the Austrian Government sent documents on the potential environmental impact, with a1350 - IAEA, “IAEA Concludes Long-Term Operational Safety Review at South Ukraine Nuclear Power Plant”, 25 April 2018,see https://www.iaea.org/newscenter/pressreleases/iaea-concludes-long-term-operational-safety-review-at-south-ukraine-nuclear-power-plant,
accessed 27 April 2018.
1351 - UNECE, “EIA/IC/CI/4 Ukraine”, United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, Undated,
see http://www.unece.org/environmental-policy/conventions/environmental-assessment/areas-of-work/review-of-compliance/
committee-initiative/eiaicci4-ukraine.html, accessed 1 May 2018.
1352 - Iryna Holovko, “Time for Europe to stop Ukraine’s nuclear energy sector”, Energy Post, 18 May 2016,see http://energypost.eu/time-europe-stop-supporting-ukraines-risky-nuclear-power-sector/, accessed 1 May 2018.
1353 - UNECE, “Compliance by Ukraine with its obligations under the Convention in respect of the extension of the lifetime of the
Rivne nuclear power plant”, February 2019, see http://www.unece.org/index.php?id=50226, accessed 9 June 2019.
1354 - Resource and Analysis Center “Society and Environment”, “Ukraine starts transboundary environmental impact assessment
for nuclear power plants”, 19 April 2017, see http://www.rac.org.ua/en/for-media/press-releases--comments/19042017-ukraine-startstransboundary-environmental-impact-assessment-for-nuclear-power-plants, accessed 1 May 2018.
1355 - Ed Adamczyk, “Ukraine scraps nuclear reactor deal with Russia”, UPI, 16 September 2015, see https://www.upi.com/Top_News/
World-News/2015/09/16/Ukraine-scraps-nuclear-reactor-deal-with-Russia/9811442413199/, accessed 1 May 2018.
1356 - NEI, “Russia ends Khmelnitsky construction agreement with Ukraine”, 13 January 2017,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsrussia-ends-khmelnitsky-construction-agreement-with-ukraine-5718894/, accessed 1 May 2018.
1357 - Energoatom, “Notice for the Environmental Impact Assessment for Khmelnisky 3 and 4”, 2017,see http://eia.menr.gov.ua/uploads/documents/332/reports/10f33f0f9340fb1cd06c16c7bcc24950.pdf, accessed 2 May 2018.

| 300

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 comment period, for Governments and citizens until early May 2019.1358 Despite this initiationof the EIA processes, there seems little chance that construction will restart in the near term.
In August 2017, the Government adopted an energy strategy which aims to maintain nuclear
power’s current generation share of about 50 percent up to 2035, while halving the level ofenergy intensity of the economy and increasing the renewable share to 25 percent (excludinghydro with 13 percent).1359
Proposals are now being developed to introduce a direct connection from Khmelnitsky‑2
to the European market. The Ukraine-EU Energy Bridge project, with an estimated cost of€243 million (US$290 million), could be carried out in the form of a public-private partnership
between the Ukrainian state and an investor consortium consisting of Westinghouse Electric
Sweden, Luxembourg-based Polenergia International, and EDF Trading. In January 2019, theMinistry of Energy announced a tender for the construction of power lines to Poland andsubstations, with bids received by mid‑March 2019. Ukraine is already exporting electricity
to Hungary, Romania and Slovakia through the Burshtyn “energy island” and to Poland andMoldova, while also importing electricity from Russia and Belarus. The Khmelnitsky project
foresees electricity export in two ways: via the 750‑kV transmission line to Rzeszów in Poland
and the line to the Albertirsa substation in Hungary. Upgrading work on these lines will enable
the addition of 1000 MWe of nuclear power to the existing export potential of Burshtyn Energy
Island.1360

1358 - Austrian Ministry of Environment, “UVP KKW Khmelnitsky 3&4”, Public Consultation Documents, 2019,see http://www.umweltbundesamt.at/umweltsituation/uvpsup/espooverfahren/espoo_ukraine/kkwkhmelnitsky34/, accessed
23 April 2019.
1359 - NEI, “Ukraine reveals new energy strategy”, 28 August 2017,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsukraine-reveals-new-energy-strategy-5910630/ accessed 1 May 2018.
1360 - WNN, “Energoatom awaits approval for energy bridge tender”, 18 June 2019,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NP-Energoatom-awaits-approval-for-energy-bridge-tender-18041801.html, accessed 9 June 2019.

| 301

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 302

ANNEX 2 – STATUS OF
CHINESE NUCLEAR FLEET
Table 23 | Chinese Nuclear Reactors in Operation (as of 1 July 2019)
ReactorModel

Net Capacity(MWe)

Construction
Start

Grid
Connection

Commercial
Operation

Changjiang-1

CNP-600

601

25/04/2010

07/11/2015

25/12/2015

Changjiang-2

CNP-600

601

21/11/2010

20/06/2016

12/08/2016

Daya Bay-1

M310

944

07/08/1987

31/08/1993

01/02/1994

Daya Bay-2

M310

944

07/04/1988

07/02/1994

06/05/1994

Fangchenggang-1

CPR-1000

1 000

30/07/2010

25/10/2015

01/01/2016

Fangchenggang-2

CPR-1000

1 000

23/12/2010

15/07/2016

01/10/2016

Fangjiashan-1

CPR-1000

1 012

26/12/2008

04/11/2014

15/12/2014

Fangjiashan-2

CPR-1000

1 012

17/07/2009

12/01/2015

12/02/2015

Fuqing-1

CPR-1000

1 000

21/11/2008

20/08/2014

22/11/2014

Fuqing-2

CPR-1000

1 000

17/06/2009

06/08/2015

16/10/2015

Fuqing-3

CPR-1000

1 000

31/12/2010

07/09/2016

24/10/2016

Fuqing-4

CPR-1000

1 000

01/10/2012

29/07/2017

17/09/2017

Haiyang-1

AP-1000

1 170

24/09/2009

17/08/2018

22/10/2018

Haiyang-2

AP-1000

1 170

21/06/2010

13/10/2018

09/01/2019

Hongyanhe-1

CPR-1000

1 061

18/08/2007

01/02/2013

06/06/2013

Hongyanhe-2

CPR-1000

1 061

28/03/2008

23/11/2013

13/05/2014

Hongyanhe-3

CPR-1000

1 061

07/03/2009

23/03/2015

16/08/2015

Hongyanhe-4

CPR-1000

1 061

15/08/2009

01/04/2016

19/09/2016

Ling Ao-1

M310

950

15/05/1997

26/02/2002

28/05/2002

Ling Ao-2

M310

950

28/11/1997

15/12/2002

08/01/2003

Ling Ao-3

CPR-1000

1 007

15/12/2005

15/07/2010

15/09/2010

Ling Ao-4

CPR-1000

1007

15/06/2006

03/05/2011

07/08/2011

Ningde-1

CPR-1000

1 018

18/02/2008

28/12/2012

15/04/2009

Ningde-2

CPR-1000

1 018

12/11/2008

04/01/2014

04/05/2014

Ningde-3

CPR-1000

1 018

08/01/2010

21/03/2015

10/06/2015

Ningde-4

CPR-1000

1018

29/09/2010

29/03/2016

21/06/2016

Qinshan-1

CNP-300

298

20/03/1985

15/12/1991

01/04/1994

Qinshan 2-1

CNP-600610

02/06/1996

06/02/2002

15/04/2002

Qinshan 2-2

CNP-600

610

01/04/1997

01/03/2004

03/05/2004

Qinshan 2-3

CNP-600

619

28/03/2006

01/08/2010

05/10/2010

Qinshan 2-4

CNP-600

619

28/01/2007

25/11/2011

30/12/2011

Qinshan 3-1

CANDU 6677

08/06/1998

09/10/2002

31/12/2002

Qinshan 3-2

CANDU 6677

25/09/1998

12/06/2003

24/07/2003

Sanmen-1

AP-1000

1 157

19/04/2009

30/06/2018

21/09/2018

Sanmen-2

AP-1000

1 157

15/12/2009

24/08/2018

05/11/2018

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Reactor

Model

| 303

Net Capacity(MWe)

Construction
Start

Grid
Connection

Commercial
Operation
13/12/2018

Taishan-1

EPR-1750

1 660

28/10/2009

29/06/2018

Taishan-2

EPR-1750

1 660

15/04/2010

28/06/2019

Tianwan-1

VVER V-428

990

20/10/1999

12/05/2006

17/05/2007

Tianwan-2

VVER V-428

990

20/10/2000

14/05/2007

16/08/2007

Tianwan-3

VVER V-428M

1 045

22/12/2012

30/12/2017

14/02/2018

Tianwan-4

VVER V-428M

1 045

27/09/2013

27/10/2018

22/12/2018

Yangjiang-1

CPR-1000

1 000

16/12/2008

31/12/2013

25/03/2014

Yangjiang-2

CPR-1000

1 000

04/06/2009

10/03/2015

05/06/2015

Yangjiang-3

CPR-1000

1 000

15/11/2010

18/10/2015

01/01/2016

Yangjiang-4

CPR-1000

1 000

17/11/2012

08/01/2017

15/03/2017

Yangjiang-5

ACPR-1000

1 000

18/09/2013

23/05/2018

12/08/2018

Yangjiang-6

ACPR-1000

1 000

31/12/2013

29/06/2019

Total Reactors in Operation: 47 Reactors / 45.5 GWe
Sources: WNISR with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

Table 24 | Chinese Nuclear Reactors in LTO

NoteReactorModel

Net Capacity(MWe)

Construction
Start

Grid
Connection

CEFR

BN-20

20

10/05/2000

21/07/2011

Commercial
Operation

Sources: WNISR with IAEA-PRIS, 2019

The China Experimental Fast Reactor (CEFR) is not primarily a power generating reactor. However, as it was connected to the gridin 2011 at about 40 percent power and achieved full power for 72 hours starting 18 December 2014 1361, it is included in the WNISR.
According to one source in China, the reactor has not been operating since December 2014, as it is lacking fuel. Other sources are also
pointing to fuel issues.1362 We have therefore decided to take it off the operational status and put it into Long-Term Outage (LTO) as ofDecember 2014. In January 2017, an agreement entered into force, for Russian Rosatom’s subsidiary TVEL fabricating fuel for CEFR in2017 and 2018 for loading into the reactor in 2019.1363 . In July 2019, Rosatom announced that TVEL had delivered “a batch of fuel” forthe CEFR reactor. 1364

1361 - See Xinhua in China Securities Journal, “China experimental fast reactor runs at full capacity”, 19 December 2014,see http://www.cs.com.cn/english/ei/201412/t20141219_4595461.html, accessed 28 May 2018.
1362 - Marl Hibbs, “Rethinking China’s Fast Reactor”, Arms Control Wonk, 17 February 2017,see https://www.armscontrolwonk.com/archive/1202830/rethinking-chinas-fast-reactor/, accessed 28 May 2018.
1363 - NEI, “Russia to supply more fuel for China’s fast reactor”, 5 January 2017,see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsrussia-to-supply-more-fuel-for-chinas-fast-reactor-5709961, accessed 28 May 2018.
1364 - Rosatom, “TVEL Fuel Company of ROSATOM Supplied Fuel for China Experimental Fast Reactor”, 9 July 2019,see https://www.rosatom.ru/en/press-centre/news/tvel-fuel-company-of-rosatom-supplied-fuel-for-china-experimental-fast-reactor-/,accessed 25 July 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 304

ANNEX 3 – STATUS OF
JAPANESE NUCLEAR FLEET
Table 25 | Status of Japanese Nuclear Reactor Fleet (as of 1 July 2019)
Operator

CHUBU

CHUGOKUHEPCO

HOKURIKU

JAPCO

KEPCO

ReactorMW

StartupYear

Hamaoka-3 (BWR)

1 056

1987

Age
Years
32.4

NRA Complianceb

Shutdown

Approval
dd/mm/yy

Duration

Application
dd/mm/yy

29/11/10

8.6

16/06/15

LTO

c

LTO

Hamaoka-4 (BWR)

1 092

1993

26.4

13/05/11

8.1

Hamaoka-5 (BWR)

1 325

2004

15.2

14/05/11

8.1

Shimane-2 (BWR)

789

1988

31.0

27/01/12

7.4

25/12/13

LTO

Tomari-1 (PWR)

550

1988

30.6

22/04/11

8.2

08/07/13

LTO

Tomari-2 (PWR)

550

1990

28.8

26/08/11

7.8

08/07/13

LTO

Tomari-3 (PWR)

866

2009

9.6

05/05/12

7.2

08/07/13

LTO

Shika-1 (BWR)

505

1993

26.5

01/03/11

8.3

Shika-2 (BWR)

1 108

2005

14.0

11/03/11

8.3

14/02/14

LTO

LTO
12/08/14

Tokai-2 (BWR)

1 060

1978

41.3

21/05/11

8.1

20/05/14

Tsuruga-2 (PWR)

1 108

1986

33.0

07/05/11

8.1

05/11/15

LTO
d

18/10/18

LTO
LTO

e

Mihama-3 (PWR)

780

1976

43.4

14/05/11

8.1

17/03/15

26/10/16

LTO

Ohi-3 (PWR)

1 127

1991

28.1

02/09/13(4.5)

08/07/13

01/09/17

Restarted
16/03/18

Ohi-4 (PWR)

1 127

1992

27.0

15/09/13(4.5)

08/07/13

01/09/17

Restarted
11/05/18

Takahama-1 (PWR)

780

1974

45.3

10/01/11

8.5

17/03/15

10/06/16f

LTO

17/03/15

f

Takahama-2 (PWR)

780

1975

44.4

25/11/11

7.6

10/06/16

LTO

Takahama-3 (PWR)

830

1984

35.1

20/02/12(3.9)e08/07/13

09/10/15

Restarted
9/06/17g

Takahama-4 (PWR)

830

1984

34.7

21/07/11(5.8)

08/07/13

09/10/15

Restarted
22/05/17

Genkai-3 (PWR)

1 127

1993

26.0

11/12/10(7.3)

12/07/13

14/09/17

Restarted
23/03/18

Genkai-4 (PWR)

1 127

1996

22.6

25/12/11(6.5)

12/07/13

14/09/17

Restarted
20/06/18

Sendai-1 (PWR)

846

1983

35.8

10/05/11(4.3)

08/07/13

27/05/15

Restarted
14/08/15

Sendai-2 (PWR)

846

1985

34.2

01/09/11(4.1)

08/07/13

27/05/15

Restarted
15/10/15

Ikata-3 (PWR)

846

1994

25.3

29/04/11(5.3)

08/07/13

19/04/16

Restartedh
15/08/16

KYUSHUSHIKOKU

StatusDatea
dd/mm/yyWo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

OperatorTEPCOTOHOKU| 305

ReactorMW

StartupYear

Kashiwazaki Kariwa-1 (BWR)

1 067

1985

Kashiwazaki Kariwa-2 (BWR)

1 067

Kashiwazaki Kariwa-3 (BWR)

Age
Years

NRA Complianceb

Shutdown

Application
dd/mm/yyApproval
dd/mm/yy

StatusDatea
dd/mm/yy

Duration

34.4

06/08/11

7.9

LTO

1990

29.4

19/02/07

12.4

LTO

1 067

1992

26.6

16/07/07

12

LTO

Kashiwazaki Kariwa-4 (BWR)

1 067

1993

25.5

16/07/07

12

LTO

Kashiwazaki Kariwa-5 (BWR)

1 067

1989

29.8

25/01/12

7.4

LTO
i

Kashiwazaki Kariwa-6 (BWR)

1 315

1996

23.4

26/03/12

7.3

27/9/13

27/12/17

LTO

Kashiwazaki Kariwa-7 (BWR)

1 315

1996

22.5

23/08/11

7.9

27/09/13

27/12/17

LTO

Fukushima Daini-1 (BWR)

1 067

1981

29.6

11/03/11

Closedj

Fukushima Daini-2 (BWR)

1 067

1983

27.7

11/03/11

ClosedFukushima Daini-3 (BWR)

1 067

1984

26.2

11/03/11

ClosedFukushima Daini-4 (BWR)

1 067

1986

24.2

11/03/11

ClosedHigashi Dori-1 (BWR)

1 067

2005

13.8

06/02/11

8.4

20/06/14

LTO

Onagawa-2 (BWR)

796

1994

25.5

06/11/10

8.6

27/12/13

LTO

Onagawa-3 (BWR)

796

2001

18.1

11/03/11

8.3

LTO

Total: 37 Reactors / 35.9 GWe

Notes

Sources: JAIF, NRA, compiled by WNISR, 2019a – The shutdown dates are from JAIF, “Current Status of Nuclear Power Plants in Japan”, Japan Atomic Industrial Forum, as of 6 June 2019,see https://www.jaif.or.jp/cms_admin/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/jp-npps-operation190606_en.pdf, accessed 2 July 2019.
b – The application and approval dates are from NRA, “Current circumstances regarding examinations for NPP adherence to new regulations”, 15 May 2019.
Gray dates refer to the first step (Permission for change in reactor-installation) or second step (Construction plan approval) of the procedure. All others
indicate final agreement of the 3-step conformity review.
c – Application withdrawn and resubmitted on 26 January 2015.
d – Nuclear Regulatory Authority’s (NRA) Approval for Basic Design (Step 2). In November 2018, NRA also approved lifetime extension to 60 years;
see JAIF, “NRA Allows Tokai-2 to Be Operated for Sixty Years, a First for a BWR”, 16 November 2018, see https://www.jaif.or.jp/en/nra-allows-tokai-2-to-beoperated-for-sixty-years-a-first-for-a-bwr/, accessed 28 April 2019.
e – Application for extension of operating period approved by NRA on 16 November 2016.
f – For both Takahama-1 and -2, the first two steps of the conformity review were achieved on 10 June 2016. The NRA also granted KEPCO approval ofextension of operation for 20 years on 20 June 2016. For details, see NRA, “The NRA approved the extension of operation period of Takahama Power Station
Units 1 and 2”, 21 June 2016, see http://www.nsr.go.jp/data/000154256.pdf, accessed 14 July 2017.
g – Takahama-3 had operated briefly between 29 January and 10 March 2016, before it was shut down by court order. The “Shutdown Duration” is calculated
until the first restart.
h – On 13 December 2017, the Hiroshima High Court ruled in favor of a citizen lawsuit and issued an injunction against operation of the Ikata‑3 reactor, which
remained in place until September 2018.
i – On 16 June 2017, TEPCO re-filed its application with the Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA) to confirm compliance with safety requirements for
Kashiwazaki Kariwa‑6 and ‑7. The NRA had requested resubmission in February 2017.
j – All 4 Fukushima Daini reactors are considered as closed by WNISR since March 2011. It is only in June 2018 that TEPCO announced that they would
consider decommissioning the four reactors, and in July 2019 they confirmed the decision. As of 1 July 2019, these units were not considered “officiallyclosed”. Their age is calculated as of closure date. See TEPCO, “Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power Station to be Decommissioned”, Press Release, 31 July 2019,see https://www7.tepco.co.jp/newsroom/press/archives/2019/hd_190731_01-e.html, accessed 2 August 2019.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 306

ANNEX 4 – ABOUT
THE AUTHORS
Mycle Schneider is an independent international analyst on energy and nuclear policy basedin Paris. He is the Convening Lead Author and Publisher of the World Nuclear Industry Status
Reports (WNISR). Mycle is a founding board member of the International Energy Advisory
Council (IEAC) and serves as the Coordinator of the Seoul International Energy Advisory
Council (SIEAC). He is a member of the International Panel on Fissile Materials (IPFM), based
at Princeton University, U.S. He has provided information and consulting services, amongst
others, to the Belgian Energy Minister, the French and German Environment Ministries, theU.S. Agency for International Development, the International Atomic Energy Agency, theEuropean Commission, and the French Institute for Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety.
Schneider has given evidence and held briefings at national Parliaments in 15 countries andat the European Parliament. He has given lectures at over 20 universities and engineeringschools around the globe. In 1997, along with Japan’s Jinzaburo Takagi, he received the Right
Livelihood Award, also known as the “Alternative Nobel Prize”.

Antony Froggatt joined Chatham House in 2007 and is a Senior Research Fellow in the
Energy, Environment and Resources Department. He studied energy and environmental policy
at the University of Westminster and the Science Policy Research Unit at Sussex University
and is currently an Associate Member of the Energy Policy Group at Exeter University. For
over 20 years he has been involved in the publication of the World Nuclear Industry Status
Report (WNISR). At Chatham House, he specializes on global electricity policy and the public
understanding of climate change. He has worked as an independent consultant for two decadeswith environmental groups, academics and public bodies in Europe and Asia as well as afreelance journalist. His most recent research project is understanding the energy and climate
policy implications of Brexit.

Julie Hazemann, based in Paris, France, is the Director of EnerWebWatch, an international
documentation monitoring service, specializing in energy and climate issues, launched in
2004. As an information engineer and researcher, she has maintained, since 1992, a world
nuclear reactor database and undertakes data-modelling and data-visualization work for theWorld Nuclear Industry Status Report (WNISR). Active in information and documentation
project-management, she has a strong tropism for information structuration, dataviz anddevelopment of electronic information products. She also undertakes specialized translation
and research activities for specific projects. She is a member of négaWatt (France) and develops
EnerWebWatch in the framework of the Coopaname Coop.

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Diana Ürge-Vorsatz Diana Ürge-Vorsatz is a Professor and former Director of the Centerfor Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Policy (3CSEP) at the Central European
University (CEU) in Budapest. She is Vice-Chair of Working Group III of the Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
She conducted her Ph.D. studies at the University of California (Berkeley and Los Angeles),and has been a Fulbright Scholar. After four years in the USA, Diana Ürge-Vorsatz returned
to Europe and has been devoting her research and teaching activities to the promotion ofsustainable energy policy for the Central and Eastern European region. She has worked on
and directed several international research projects for organizations including the European
Commission, the Global Environment Facility, the United Nation’s Environment Program, theWorld Energy Council and the World Bank. She has been regularly advising the Hungarian
government on environmental, climate change and energy issues.
Dr. Ürge-Vorsatz has authored over 120 publications and has been serving on several advisoryand governing bodies of organizations including U.K. Energy Research Centre, Renewable
Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership (REEEP), the European Council for an Energy
Efficient Economy (ECEEE), among others. She serves on the United Nation’s Special Expert
Group on Climate Change. She has been acknowledged to share the Nobel Peace Prize of 2007
that was awarded to the IPCC and received the Hungarian Republic’s Medium Cross Award.

Tadahiro Katsuta holds a PhD in plasma physics from Hiroshima University (1997). He
is currently a Professor at Meiji University, Tokyo, Japan. During 2014–15 he was a Visiting
Fellow in the Program on Science and Global Security (PSGS) at Princeton University, U.S.
He is researching Japan’s spent fuel management issues. He is also studying the Fukushima
Daiichi nuclear power plant accident and following the new regulation standards with a focus
on technical and political aspects. He has been appointed by Japan’s Nuclear Regulation
Authority (NRA) as a member of the study teams on the New Regulatory Requirements forCommercial Nuclear Power Reactors, for Nuclear Fuel Facilities, Research Reactors, andfor Nuclear Waste Storage/Disposal Facilities. During 2008–09, he conducted research on
multilateral nuclear fuel cycle systems as a Visiting Fellow at PSGS. During 2006–08, he
carried out research at the University of Tokyo on separated plutonium issues linked to the
Rokkasho reprocessing plant. During 1999–2005, he worked as a researcher at the Citizens’
Nuclear Information Center (CNIC) in Tokyo.

M.V. Ramana is the Simons Chair in Disarmament, Global and Human Security with the
Liu Institute for Global Issues at the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs, Universityof British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. He received his Ph.D. in theoretical physics from
Boston University. Ramana is the author of “The Power of Promise: Examining Nuclear Energy
in India” (Penguin Books, 2012) and co­‑editor of “Prisoners of the Nuclear Dream” (Orient
Longman, 2003). He is a member of the International Panel on Fissile Materials (IPFM) andthe Canadian Pugwash Group. He is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and a Leo
Szilard Award from the American Physical Society.

| 307

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Amory B. Lovins is cofounder and Chief Scientist of Rocky Mountain Institute; energy advisor
to governments (including the U.S. Department of Energy and Defense) and major firms(including 100+ utilities) in 70+ countries for 45+ years; author of 31 books and 640+ papers; anintegrative designer of superefficient buildings, factories, and vehicles; and a student of nuclear
issues for 55 years.
He has received the Blue Planet, Volvo, Zayed, Onassis, Nissan, Shingo, and Mitchell Prizes, theMacArthur and Ashoka Fellowships, the Happold, Benjamin Franklin, and Spencer Hutchens
Medals, 12 honorary doctorates, and the Heinz, Lindbergh, Right Livelihood (“alternative
Nobel”), National Design, and World Technology Awards. In 2016, the President of Germany
awarded him the Officer’s Cross of the Order of Merit (Bundesverdienstkreuz 1. Klasse).
A Harvard and Oxford dropout, former Oxford don, honorary U.S. architect, and Swedish
engineering academician, he has taught at ten universities, most recently Stanford’sEngineering School and the Naval Postgraduate School (but only on topics he’s never formallystudied, so as to retain beginner’s mind). He served in 2011–18 on the U.S. National Petroleum
Council. Time has named him one of the world’s 100 most influential people, and Foreign Policy,
one of the 100 top global thinkers. His latest books include Natural Capitalism (1999), Small
Is Profitable (2002), Winning the Oil Endgame (2004), The Essential Amory Lovins (2011), andReinventing Fire (2011).
His main recent efforts include supporting RMI’s collaborative synthesis, for China’s National
Development and Reform Commission, of an ambitious efficiency-and-renewables trajectorythat informed the 13th Five Year Plan; helping the Government of India design transformational
mobility; and exploring how to make integrative design the new normal, so investments toenergy efficiency can yield expanding rather than diminishing returns.

Christian von Hirschhausen is Professor of Economics at the Workgroup for Economic
and Infrastructure Policy (WIP) at Berlin University of Technology (TU Berlin), andResearch Director at DIW Berlin (German Institute for Economic Research). He obtained a
PhD in Industrial Economics from the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Paris, andwas previously Chair of Energy Economics and Public Sector Management University ofTechnology (TU Dresden). Von Hirschhausen focuses on the regulation and financing of
infrastructure sectors, mainly energy, and is a regular advisor to industry and policymakers,
amongst them the World Bank, the European Commission, European Investment Bank, andseveral German Ministries. Von Hirschhausen also focusses on energy technologies, and is oneof the coordinators of a research project on nuclear energy in Germany, Europe, and abroad,including the first independent monitoring of the decommissioning process of German nuclear
power plants.

| 308

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

Ben Wealer is a Research Associate at the Workgroup for Economic and Infrastructure
Policy (WIP) at Berlin University of Technology (TU Berlin), and guest researcher at
DIW Berlin (German Institute for Economic Research). He holds an MSc in Industrial
Engineering in the discipline of energy and resource management from TU Berlin. His
field of research is nuclear power economics with a focus on organizational models fordecommissioning of nuclear power plants and radioactive waste management, economics ofnuclear power plant new-build, and the dual-use issues of nuclear power. Wealer is a longterm member of a research project on nuclear energy in Germany, Europe, and abroad run
jointly by TU Berlin and DIW Berlin and he is a co-author of the first German independent
decommissioning monitoring survey.

Agnès Stienne is an artist, cartographer, and independent graphic designer. She has
contributed for over a decade to the French journal Le Monde Diplomatique, and the
Visioncarto.net website dedicated to cartographical experimentation. She has creatednumerous “narrative cartographics” to illustrate a wide range of complex subjects andissues, including international treatises on armed conflicts, and the damages of wars. She
currently leads a research project focusing on agricultural practices, “land grabbing” andother fundamental agriculture and food issues. The results of her research are featured on the
Visioncarto.net website, as “geo-poetic” briefs, in which she uses aquarelle-paint to translate
her findings into maps and data-visualizations. More recently her work was exhibited at the
University Library of Valenciennes in Octobre 2018, and Montmorillon’s Cartography Festival
in May 2019. She contributed to the CIRAD-FAO Report “Agri-food Systems at risk: new trends
and challenges” published in April 2019.

| 309

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 310

ANNEX 5 – ABBREVIATIONS
3/11
ABB

East Japan Great Earthquake, Fukushima Nuclear Accident
Asea Brown Boveri — Swiss-Swedish Electric Power Corporation

ABWR

Advanced Boiling Water Reactor

ADR

Alternative Dispute Resolution Center (Japan)

AEC
AECL

Atomic Energy Commission (U.S.)
or Atomic Energy Council (Taiwan)
Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (Canada)

AEPS

Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards

AFP

Agence France Presse — French Press Agency

AGEB
AGR

Arbeitsgruppe Energiebilanzen — Working Group on Energy Balances of the German Institute for
Economic Research (DIW)
Advanced Gas-cooled Reactor

AHWR

Advanced Heavy Water Reactor

ALPS

Advanced Liquid Processing System

ANAV

Asociación Nuclear Ascó Vandellós II — Nuclear Power Utility Ascó Vandellós II (Spain)

AR5

5th Assassment Report on Climate Change, of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

ARENH

Accès Régulé à l’Énergie Nucléaire Historique — Regulated Access to Historic Nuclear Energy

ASBL

Atomic Safety Licensing Board (U.S.)

ASN

Autorité de Sûreté Nucléaire — Nuclear Safety Authority (France)

ATMEA

Areva–MHI joint reactor design

B&W

Babcock & Wilcox

BAEC

Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission

BNDES

Brazilian National Development Bank

BNEF

Bloomberg New Energy FinanceBP

BP plc / Beyond Petroleum

BPE

Basic Plan for long-term Electricity supply and demand (South Korea)

BREST

Reactor Design

BWR

Boiling Water Reactor

CANDU

CANadian Deuterium Uranium — Canadian Reactor Design

CAREM

Central Argentina de Elementos Modulares — Spanish Small Modular Reactor

CCC

Committee on Climate Change (U.K.)

CCS

Carbon Capture and Storage

CCSE

CEFR

La Cassa conguaglio per il settore elettrico — Public Equalization Fund for the Electricity Sector—now
CSEA (Italy)
Commissariat à l’Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives — Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy
Commission (France)
or Central Electric Authority (India)
China Experimental Fast Reactor

CEO

Chief Executive Officer

CEU

Central European University (Hungary)ČEZČeské Energetické Závody — Public Power Utility (Czech Republic)

CEAWo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

| 311

CfD

Contract for Difference

CGDD
CGN

Commissariat général au développement durable — General Commission for Sustainable Development(France)
China General Nuclear Corporation

CLP

Containment Liner Plate

CNEA

Comision Nacional de Energia Atómica — National Atomic Energy Commission (Argentina)

CNIC

Citizens’ Nuclear Information Center (Japan)

CNNC

China National Nuclear Corporation

CNSC

Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission

CO2

Carbon Dioxide

Cs-134/-137

Caesium-134 or -137

CSEA
CSN

Cassa per i Servizi Energetici e Ambientali — Public Fund for Energy & Environmental Services—formerly
CCSE (Italy)
Consejo de Seguridad Nuclear — Nuclear Safety Council (Spain)

CVTR

Carolinas-Virginia Tube Reactor (U.S.)

CWIPConstruction? Works in Progress

DAE

Department of Atomic Energy (India)

DBE

Design Basis Earthquake

DCRM

Dynamic Control rod Reactivity Measurement

DECC

Department of Energy & Climate Change (U.K.)

DIW

Deutsches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung — German Institute for Economic Research (Germany)

DOE
DPP

Department of Energy (U.S.)
or Department of Energy (South-Africa)
Democratic Progressive Party (Taiwan)

EBITDA

Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization

EBRD

European Bank for Reconstruction and Development

ECEEE

European Council for an Energy Efficient Economy

ECJ

European Court of Justice (EU)EDF

Éléctricité de France — French Power Utility

EGAT

Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand

EIA

Energy Information Administration (U.S. Department of Energy)
or Environmental Impact Assessment

ENEC

Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (UAE)

ENEL

Ente Nazionale per l’Energia elettrica — National Electric Power Corporation (Italy)

ENSI

Eidgenössischen Nuklearsicherheitsinspektorat — Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate (Switzerland)

ENSREG

European Nuclear Safety Regulators GroupENTSO-E

European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity

EPH
EPR

Energeticky a Prumyslovy Holding — Energy and Industry Holding — privately-held Czech-Slovak
company
European Pressurized water Reactors

EPSA

Electric Power Supply Association

EPZ

Elektriciteits Produktiemaatschappij Zuid-Nederland — Electricity Production Company SouthNetherlands

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

| 312

ERI

Energy Research Institute (NDRC)EUEuropean UnionEÜAS

Elektrik Üretim A.Ş. — Electricity Generation Company (Turkey)

EVN

Electricity of Vietnam

FANC

Federal Agency for Nuclear Control (Belgium)

FAO

Financial Accountability Office of Ontario (Canada)FBI

Federal Bureau of Investigation (U.S.)

FBR

Fast Breeder Reactor

FEPC

Federation of Electric Power Companies (Japan)

FERC

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (U.S.)

FL3

Flamanville-3

FTP

Federal Target Program (Russia)

FY

Financial Year

GCNEP

Global Centre for Nuclear Energy Partnership

GCR

Gas-Cooled Reactor

GDA

Generic Design Assessment

GDF

Gaz De France — French Power Utility (now known as Engie)

GDOS

General Directorate for the Environment (Poland)

Gen III

Generation III reactor

GP ESPN
HB6Groupe Permanent d’Experts pour les équipements sous Pression Nucléaires — Advisory Committee fornuclear pressure equipment of the French Nuclear Safety Authority
House Bill 6 (U.S.)

HFT

Hot Functional Testing

HPC

Hinkley Point C

HTRHigh Temperature Reactor

HWLWR

Heavy Water-Moderated Light Water-Cooled Reactor

IAEA

International Atomic Energy Agency

ICBC

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China

ICCInternational Chamber of Commerce

IEA

International Energy Agency (OECD)

IEAC

International Energy Advisory Council

IEEFA

Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis

IIDSF

Ignalina International Decommissioning Support Fund

IMF

International Monetary Fund

INIR

Integrated Nuclear Infrastructure Review

INPP

Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant

INRAG

International Nuclear Risk Assessment Group

IPCC

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

IPFM

International Panel on Fissile Materials

IRENAInternational Renewable Energy Agency

IRID

International Research Institute for Nuclear Decommissioning

IRP

Integrated Resource PlanWo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

IRSN
ISO-NE

Institut de Radioprotection et de Sûreté Nucléaire — Institute for Radiation Protection and Nuclear
Safety (France)
Independent System Operator-New England (U.S.)

JAEA

Japan Atomic Energy Agency

JAIF

Japan Atomic Industrial Forum, Inc.

JAPC

Japan Atomic Power Company

JAVYS
JESS

Jadrová A VYradovacia Spoločnost’ — State-Owned Nuclear Power And Decommissioning Company(Slovakia)
Jadrová energetická spoločnosť Slovenska — Nuclear Power Company (Slovakia)

JPY

Japanese Yen

JSWJapan Steel Works

KA-CAREKing Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (Saudi Arabia)

KAERI

Korean Atomic Energy Research Institute (South Korea)

KANUPP

Karachi Nuclear Power Plant

KEPCO

Korean Electric Power Corporation (South Korea)
or Kansai Electric Power Company (Japan)

KGHM

Kombinat Górniczo-Hutniczy Miedzi — Copper Mining and Smelting Industrial Complex (Poland)

KHNP

Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Company (South Korea)

KKW

Kernkraftwerk — Nuclear Power Station (in German)

KLT-40S

Floating Reactor Design (Russia)

LBNL

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboraty

LCOE

Levelized Cost of Energy

LDP

Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)

LKP

Liberty Korea Party (South Korea)

LMP

Locational Marginal PriceLTE

Long-Term Enclosure or “Safe Storage”

LTO

Long-Term Outage

LTS

Long-Term Shutdown

LWGR

Light-Water Gas-Cooled Reactor

LWR

Light-Water Reactor

MEAG

Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia (U.S.)

METI

Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (Japan)

MHI

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd.

MHLW

Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (Japan)

MIT

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (U.S.)

MME

Ministry of Mines and Energy (Brazil)

MoE

Ministry of the Environment (Japan)

MOEA

Ministry of Economic Affairs (Taiwan)

MoFa

Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Lithuania)

MOTIE

Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (South Korea)

MoU

Memorandum of Understanding

MOX

uranium-plutonium Mixed Oxide fuel| 313

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

NAONational Audit Office (U.K.)

NDA

National Decommissioning Authority (U.K.)

NDC

Nationally Determined Contributions

NDRC

National Development and Reform Commission (China)

NEA

National Energy Administration (China)
or Nuclear Energy Agency (OECD)NEB

National Energy Board (Canada)

NEI
NEK

Nuclear Engineering Internationalor Nuclear Energy InstituteNuklearna Elektrarna Krško — Krško Nuclear Power Plant (Slovenia)NGO

Non-Governmental Organization

NIW

Nuclear Intelligence Weekly (Publication)NJBPUNew Jersey Board of Public Utilities (U.S.)

NJZNová Jadrová Zdroj — Bohunice new-build Project (Slovakia)

NPCIL

Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd.

NPS

Nuclear Power Station
or National Policy Statement (U.K.)

NPT

Non-Proliferation Treaty

NRA

Nuclear Regulatory Authority (Japan)

NRC

Nuclear Regulatory Commission (U.S. or Japan)

NRCan

Natural Resources Canada

NRDC

Natural Resources Defense Council

NSSC

Nuclear Safety and Security Commission (South Korea)

NW

Nucleonics Week (Publication)

NYPSC

New York Public Service Commission (U.S.)

OECD

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

OKG

Oskarshamns Kraftgrupp AB — Oskarshamn Power Corporation (Sweden)

OL3

Olkiluoto-3 Project (Finland)

ONR

Office for Nuclear Regulation (U.K.)

OPC

Oglethorpe Power Corporation (U.S.)

OPPD

Omaha Public Power District (U.S.)

OPS

Oglethorpe Power Corporation (U.S.)

PAEC

Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (Pakistan)

PCV

Primary Containment Vessel

PFBR

Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor

PG&E

Pacific Gas and Electric Company (U.S.)

PGE

Polska Grupa Energetyczna — State-owned Public Power Company (Poland)

PHWR

Pressurized High Water Reactor

PIEC

Integrated Energy and Climate Plan

PJM

Pennsylvania New Jersey Maryland Interconnection LLC (U.S.)

PLEX

Plant Life Extension

POSRV

pilot-operated safety relief valve| 314

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

| 315

PPA

Power Purchase Agreement

PPE

Multi Annual Energy Plan (France)

PRIS

Power Reactor Information System

PSC

Public Service Commission (U.S.)

PSEG

Public Service Enterprise Group (U.S.)

PSGS

Program on Science and Global Security, Princeton University (U.S.)

PSOEPartido Socialista Obrero Español — Spanish Socialist Worker’s Party

PWR

Pressurized Water Reactor

PZEM

Provinciale Zeeuwse Energie Maatschappij N.V. — Energy Company of the Zeeland Province (Netherlands)

R&D
RAB

Research & Design
or Research & Development
Regulated Asset BaseRBMK

Graphite-Moderated Boiling Water Reactor—Chernobyl TypeRCSReactor Coolant System

REEEP

Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership

REN21

Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century

RPM

Reliability Pricing Model

RPV

Reactor Pressure Vessel

RTE

Réseau de Transport d'Électricité — Transmission System Operator (France)

RTO

Regional Transmission Organization

RVI

Reactor Vessel Internals

RWE

Rheinisch-Westfälisches Elektrizitätswerk AG — RWE AG — Rhine-Westphalia Power Utility (Germany)

S&P

Standard & Poor’s

SAFCEI

Southern African Faith Communities Environment Institute

SALTO

Safety Aspects of Long-Term Operation

SCE

Southern California Edison (U.S.)

SCG&E

South Carolina Electric & Gas (U.S.)

SDG&E

San Diego Gas & Electric (U.S.)

SE

Slovenské Elektrárne — State Utility (Slovakia)

SEC

Securities and Exchange Commission (U.S.)

SELC

Southern Environmental Law Center (U.S.)

SFOE

Swiss Federal Office of Energy

SGHWR

Steam Generating Heavy Water Reactor

SIEAC

Seoul International Energy Advisory Council

SMART

System-Integrated Modular Advanced Reactor

SMR

Small Modular Reactor

SNN

Societatea Nationala Nuclearelectrica — National Nuclear Power Company (Romania)

SNPTC

Chinese State Nuclear Power Technology Corporation

Sogin
SPIC

Società Gestione Impianti Nucleari SpA — State-owned company responsible for decommissioning &radioactive waste management (Italy)
State Power Investment Corporation

SRO

Senior Reactor Operator

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

SSMStrålsäkerhetsmyndigheten — Swedish Radiation Safety Authority

STUK

Säteilyturvakeskus — Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (Finland)

TEPCOTokyo Electric Power Company (Japan)

THORP

Thermal Oxide Reprocessing Plant

TMI

Three Mile Island Nuclear Power Plant (U.S.)

TU-Berlin

Berlin University of Technology

TVA

Tennessee Valley Authority

TVO

Teollisuuden Voima’s — Nuclear Power Company (Finland)

U.K.

United Kingdom

U.S.

United States

U.S.DOE

U.S. Department of Energy

U.S.EIA

U.S. Energy Information Administration

UAE

United Arab Emirates

UAMPS

Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (U.S.)

UCS

Union of Concerned Scientists

UNECE

UN Economic Commission for Europe

UNEP

United Nations Environment Program

UNGG

Uranium Naturel Graphite Gaz

UNSCEAR

United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation

UzAtomAgency for Nuclear Energy (Uzbekistan)

VAT

Value-Added Tax

VD3 or VD4

3rd or 4th Decennial Safety Review (France)

VVER

Vodo-Vodianoï Energuetitcheski Reaktor — Russian Pressurized Water Reactor Design

WACC

Weighted Average Cost of Capital

WIP

Workgroup at the Workgroup for Economic and Infrastructure Policy

WNA

World Nuclear Association

WNISRWorld Nuclear Industry Status Report

WNN

World Nuclear News

WTO

World Trade Organization

ZEC

Zero Emission Credits
or Zero Emission Certificates (U.S.)
Zero Emission Nuclear

ZEN

| 316

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 317Electrical and Other UnitskW

kilowatt (unit of installed electric power capacity)kWhkilowatt-hour (unit of electricity production or consumption)MWmegawatt (106 watts)

MWemegawatt electric (as distinguished from megawatt thermal, MWt)

GW

gigawatt (109 watts)

GWe

gigawatt electricTWhterawatt hour (1012 watt-hours)Jjoule (unit of energy in the international system of Units)

EJ

exajoule, or 1018 joules

MTOE

Million Tons of Oil Equivalent

Bq

Becquerel

Bq/cm3Becquerel per cubic centimeter

Bq/m2

Becquerel per square meter

Gy

Gy/h

gray
(derived unit of ionizing radiation dose—defined as the absorption of one joule of radiation energy per
kilogram of matter)gray per hourmSv

millisievert

mSv/hmillisievert per hour

Sv

SievertSv/h

Sievert per hourSv/ySievert per year

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 318

ANNEX 6 - STATUS OF NUCLEAR
POWER IN THE WORLD
Table 26 | Status of Nuclear Power in the World (as of 1 July 2019)
Nuclear Fleet
Operating

Country

LTO

Mean Agea

Under
Construction

Units

Years

Units
1

Units

Capacity(MW)

Argentina

3

1 633

28.8

Armenia

1

375

39.5

Bangladesh

-

-

-

2
2

Power

EnergyShare ofElectricityb

Share ofCommercial
Primary Energyc

4.7% (=)

1.8% (=)

25.6% (–)

Belarus---Belgium

7

5 918

39.3

Brazil

2

1 884

28.1

2.7% (=)

1.2% (=)

Bulgaria

2

1 966

29.8

34.7% (=)

19.7% (=)

Canada18

12 6761

36.4/36

14.9% (=)

6.6 (=)

China

47

45 4981

7.15

Czech Republic

6

3 932

28

Finland

4

2 784

40.3

France58

63 13034.4

Germany

7

9 515

32.8

Hungary

4

1 902

34.0

India

21

6 165

22.3

Iran

1

915

7.8

Japan

9

8 706

Mexico

2

1 552

27.4

24

28.4/29.9

Netherlands

1

482

46,0

Pakistan

5

1 318

15.9

Romania

2

1 300

17.5

Russia36

28 35529.1

Slovakia

4

1 814

27.3

Slovenia

1

688

37.7

South Africa

2

1 860

South Korea

23

22 153

Spain

7

7 121

Sweden8

Switzerland

5

Taiwan4

3 844

Turkey--39% (–)

10

4.2% (=)

2% (=)

34.5% (+)

16.1% (=)

1

32.4% (=)

17.8% (=)

1

71.7% (=)

38.5% (=)

11.7% (=)

5.3% (=)

50.6% (=)

15% (=)

71

1.1% (=)

2.1% (=)

0.6% (=)

6.2% (+)

2.4% (+)

5.3% (=)

1.6% (=)

3% (=)

0.9% (=)
2.6% (=)

17.2% (=)

7.7% (=)

5

17.9% (=)

6.4% (=)

2

55% (=)

20.6 (=)

35.9% (–)

18.6%(–)

4.7% (–)

2.1% (=)

23.7% (–)

10% (–)

34.4

20.4% (=)

8.9% (=)

8 631

38.9

40.3% (=)

29% (+)

3 333

44.2

37.7% (+)

20.9% (+)

11.4% (+)

5.3% (–)

1

20.1/19.9

3.1% (=)

6.8% (=)

2

34.6
1

10.4% (–)

4

37/36.1
-

1

UAE

-

-

-

4

UK

15

8 923

35.4

1

Ukraine15

13 10730.4

17.7% (–)

7.7% (=)

53% (–)

22.7% (=)

USA

97

98 65838.9

219.3% (=)

8.4% (=)

EU

126

118 10634.4

525.2% (=)c

11.1% (=)

46c

4.4% (=)

World

417

370 13828

29.9/30.1

10.2% (=)

Source: WNISR2019, IAEA-PRIS, BP, 2019a - Including reactors in Long-Term Outage (LTO)/Excluding reactors in LTO (when different)b - From IAEA-PRIS, “Nuclear Share of Electricity Generation in 2018”, as of 1 July 2019
c - From BP, “Statistical Review of World Energy”, 2019

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 | 319

ANNEX 7 - NUCLEAR
REACTORS IN THE WORLD“UNDER CONSTRUCTION”
Table 27 | Nuclear Reactors in the World “Under Construction” (as of 1 July 2019)
Country
Argentina

Units
1

Carem25
Bangladesh

Capacity
MW netConstruction Start(dd/mm/yyyy)

Expected
Grid Connection

DelayedCAREM (PWR)

08/02/2014

20211

yes

25
25

2

Model

2 160

Rooppur-1

1 080

VVER-1200

30/11/2017

20232(commercial operation)

Rooppur-2

1 080

VVER-1200

14/07/2018

20243(commercial operation)

Belarus2

2 218

Belarusian-1

1 109

VVER V-491

06/11/2013

Q4 20194

yes

Belarusian-2

1 109

VVER V-491

03/06/2014

7/20205

?

China

10

8 800

CFR-600

600

FBR

29/12/2017

20236

Fangchenggang-3

1 000

HPR-1000

24/12/2015

20217

Fangchenggang-4

1 000

HPR-1000

23/12/2016

20228
yes
?

Fuqing-5

1 000

HPR-1000

07/05/2015

6/2020(completion)9

Fuqing-6

1 000

HPR-1000

22/12/2015

20211011

Hongyanhe-5

1 000

ACPR-1000

29/03/2015

2020

Hongyanhe-6

1 000

ACPR-1000

24/07/2015

202112

Shidao Bay-1

200

HTR-PM

01/12/2012

202013yes

Tianwan-5

1 000

CNP-1000

27/12/2015

12/202014(commercial operation)

Tianwan-6

1 000

CPR-1000

07/09/2016

10/202115(commercial operation)

EPR

12/08/2005

4/202016

yes

EPR

03/12/2007

202217yes

PHWR-700

22/11/2010

12/201918(commercial operation)

yes

Finland1

Olkiluoto-3
France1 600
1Flamanville-3
India
Kakrapar-3

1 600

1 600
1 600

7

4 824
630

19

Kakrapar-4

630

PHWR-700

22/11/2010

12/2020(commercial operation)

Kudankulam-3

917

VVER V-412

29/06/2017

3/202320(commercial operation)

Kudankulam-4

917

VVER V-412

23/10/2017

11/202321(commercial operation)

PFBR

470

FBR

23/10/2004

10/202122

yes

yes

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 Country

Units

Rajasthan-7

630

Rajasthan-8
Japan

630
1

Shimane-3
Pakistan

Capacity
MW netModel
PHWR

Construction Start(dd/mm/yyyy)

Expected
Grid Connection

Delayed18/07/2011

12/202023(commercial operation)

yes

24

PHWR

30/09/2011

12/2021(commercial operation)

yes

ABWR

12/10/2007

?25

yes

1 325
1 325

2

| 320

2 028

Kanupp-2

1 014

ACP-1000

20/08/2015

202026(expected operation)

Kanupp-3

1 014

ACP-1000

31/05/2016

202127(expected operation)

Russia5

3 379

Akademic Lomonosov-1

32

KLT-40S ‘Floating’

15/04/2007

201928yes

Akademic Lomonosov-2

32

KLT-40S ‘Floating’

15/04/2007

201929yes

Kursk 2-1

1 115

VVER V-510

29/04/2018

2022

Kursk 2-2

1 115

VVER V-510

15/04/2019

202330Leningrad 2-2

1 085

VVER V-491

15/04/2010

202231(commissioning)

yes

VVER V-213

01/01/1985

202032

yes

VVER V-213

01/01/1985

33

2021

yes

Slovakia

2

Mochovce-3

440

Mochovce-4
South Korea

880

440
4

5 360

Shin-Hanul-1

1 340

APR-1400

10/07/2012

11/201934(commercial operation)

yes

Shin-Hanul-2

1 340

APR-1400

19/06/2013

7/202035(commercial operation)

yes

Shin-Kori-5

1 340

APR-1400

03/04/2017

3/202336(commercial operation)

yes

Shin-Kori-6

1 340

APR-1400

20/09/2018

6/202437

VVER V-491

03/04/2018

202438yes

APR-1400

19/07/2012

202039yes

40

Turkey1

Akkuyu-1
UAE

1 114
1 114

4

Barakah-1

5 380
1 345

Barakah-2

1 345

APR-1400

30/05/2013

2021

yes

Barakah-3

1 345

APR-1400

24/09/2014

202241

yes

Barakah-4

1 345

APR-1400

30/07/2015

202342yes

EPR-1750

11/12/201843

202544AP-1000

12/03/2013

11/202145

yes

19/11/2013

46

11/2022yes

1985–20192019–2025

27–29

UK

1

1 630

Hinkley Point C-1

1

1 630

USA

2

2 234

Vogtle-3

1 117

Vogtle-4
World

1 117
46

44 557

AP-1000

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 Notes
1 - Delayed several times. Carem is now expected to be in operation in late 2021 or 2022, a further delay of at least one year since
WNISR2018. See WNA, “Nuclear Power in Argentina”, June 2019, see http://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/countryprofiles/countries-a-f/argentina.aspx, accessed 16 June 2019; and Matías Alonso, “CAREM: Reactor en alta tensión”, Agencia TSS,
21 February 2019 (in Spanish), see http://www.unsam.edu.ar/tss/carem-reactor-en-alta-tension/, accessed 16 May 2019.
2 - Rosatom, “First concrete poured at the constructed Rooppur NPP site (Bangladesh)”, Press Release, 30 November 2017,see http://rosatom.ru/en/press-centre/news/first-concrete-poured-at-the-constructed-rooppur-npp-site-bangladesh/, accessed
30 November 2017.
3 - Rosatom, “Main construction of the 2nd Unit of Rooppur NPP begins with the ‘First Concrete’ ceremony”, Press Release,
14 July 2018, see http://rosatom.ru/en/press-centre/news/main-construction-of-the-2nd-unit-of-rooppur-npp-begins-with-the-firstconcrete-ceremony/, accessed 15 July 2018.
4 - Delayed. Grid connection is expected in last quarter 2019. No delay since WNISR2018. See BelTA , “Belarusian nuclear power plant
specialists issued nuclear energy permits”, Belarus News, 20 May 2019, see https://eng.belta.by/society/view/belarusian-nuclear-powerplant-specialists-issued-nuclear-energy-permits-121157-2019, accessed 21 May 2019.
5 - BelTta, “Belarusian nuclear power plant to give electricity to national power grid in Q4 2019”, Belarus News, 28 March 2018,see http://eng.belta.by/economics/view/belarusian-nuclear-power-plant-to-give-electricity-to-national-power-gridin-q1-2019-110418-2018, accessed 24 April 2018.
6 - CFR-600 is not listed as under construction by PRIS. Concrete pouring is reported to have taken place in December 2017;
commercial operation was then expected 2023. See WNN, “China begins building pilot fast reactor”, 29 December 2017,see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-China-begins-building-pilot-fast-reactor-2912174.html, accessed 30 December 2017.
7 - No information concerning expected startup date in CGN’s announcement of construction start. CGN’s Annual Reports for 2016 to2018 refer to 2022 as “Expected Date of Commencement of Operation” for both units. CGN, “Annual Report 2018”, 2019,see http://www3.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2019/0408/LTN20190408772.pdf, accessed 9 April 2019. Sources in Chinasuggest that because the two units are the first HPR-1000 to be constructed, grid connection appears impossible before 2020–21 for
Unit 3 and 2021–22 for Unit 4, although CGN has pledged to do its utmost to connect its first domestic Generation III reactor to thegrid in 2021, at the earliest in November 2021. WNISR2019 advances the date from 2022 to 2021.
8 - See previous note.
9 - CNNC Chairman quoted by Reuters in March 2016, said that hopes are that construction of the first Hualong (Fuqing5) will becompleted by June 2020. See Reuters, “China’s debut Westinghouse reactor delayed until June 2017”, 9 March 2016,see http://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-parliament-nuclear-idUSKCN0WB09F, accessed 24 June 2016. No change since
WNISR2016, already delayed from original startup date of 2019. Other sources (World Nuclear Association, Nuclear Engineering
International) keep 2019 as completion date.
10 - Probably delayed. 2020 was the completion date announced at construction start. See WNN, “First concrete for sixth Fuqingunit”, 22 December 2015, see http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-First-concrete-for-sixth-Fuqing-unit-2212154.html, accessed
26 June 2016. Other sources in China point to dome hosting only implemented in March 2018 and installation of the pressure vessel inJanuary 2019. The earliest expected grid connection would be June 2021.
11 - At construction start of Hongyanhe-5, it was announced that Honghyane-5 & -6 would be completed by 2021. Operation of
Hongyanhe5 was later reported to be expected in November 2019, change introduced in WNISR2017.
See NEI, “Dome installed at China’s Hongyanhe5”, 17 April 2017, see http://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsdome-installed-atchinas-hongyanhe-5-5787690, accessed 6 August 2017. As CGN’s annual reports refer to second semester 2020 as “Expected Date ofCommencement of Operation”, WNISR2018 reinstated 2020.
12 - At construction start of Honghyane-5, WNN wrote “the company aims to have Honghyane-5 & -6 in operation by 2021.” Later, as itannounced construction start of Hongyanhe6, WNN used 8/2020 as startup date.
CGN’s annual report for 2018 still refers to 2021 as “Expected Date of Commencement of Operation”. WNISR2018 reinstated 2021 as atarget, however sources in China indicated that grid connection could be achieved in 2020.
13 - Further delay of one year since WNISR2018. According to sources in China, problems with the manufacturing of the steam
generators for ShidaoBay will make it difficult to finish construction in 2019; startup is therefore likely to be postponed until 2020 at
the earliest.
14 - WNISR, “China: Grid Connection for Fuqing-3 and Construction Start on Tianwan-6”, 9 September 2016, see https://www.
worldnuclearreport.org/China-Grid-Connection-for-Fuqing-3-and-Construction-Start-on-Tianwan-6.html, accessed 22 August 2019.
15 - Ibidem.
16 - Delayed several times from its original planned commissioning in 2009. According to new schedule provided in July 2019, gridconnection is now expected in April 2020, and regular electricity generation in July 2020. A further delay of about one year compared
to WNISR2018. TVO, “OL3 EPR’s regular electricity generation starts in July 2020”, Press Release, 13 June 2018, see https://www.tvo.fi/
news/2124, accessed 17 July 2019.
17 - Delayed several times from its original planned startup date of 2012. In July 2019, EDF announced that following the decisionof the French Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN) concerning the penetration welds (see France Focus) it was studying three different
scenarios concerning “the impacts on schedule and costs in the coming months”, and would comunicate on the matter, adding that “atthis stage, commissioning cannot be expected before end of 2022”. See EDF, “2019 half-year results—Stable EBITDA—Confirmationof 2019 targets and 2019–2020 ambitions”, Press Release, 26 July 2019, see https://www.edf.fr/sites/default/files/contrib/groupe-edf/| 321

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

espaces-dedies/espace-finance-en/financial-information/publications/financial-results/h1-2019/20190726-h1-2019-cp-en.pdf, accessed
26 July 2019.
18 - Delayed several times. See NPCIL, “Status of Project under Construction—Kakrapar Atomic Power Project”, Undated,
see https://www.npcil.nic.in/content/301_1_KakraparAtomicPowerProject.aspx, last accessed 19 July 2019.
19 - Ibidem.
20 - No indication of delay. See NPCIL, “Status of Project under Construction—Kudankulam Atomic Power Project”, Undated,
see https://www.npcil.nic.in/content/831_1_KudankulamNuclearPowerProject.aspx, accessed 25 June 2019.
21 - NPCIL, “Status of Project under Construction—Kudankulam Atomic Power Project”, op. cit. In 2018, ASE quoted 2024 as“guarantee operation date”. See Atomstroyexport, “Kudankulam NPP (India)”, Undated, see http://www.atomstroyexport.ru/wps/
wcm/connect/ase/eng/about/NPP+Projects/Current/Kudankulam_india/, accessed 9 May 2018.
22 - Further delayed. Criticality is now announced for 2020 with commissioning in October 2021. A further delay of 3 years compared
to WNISR2018. See Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, “Flash Report on Central Sector Projects (Rs. 150 crore
and above) March 2019”, Government of India, 2019, see http://www.cspm.gov.in/english/flr/Fr_mar_Report_2019.pdf, accessed
20 June 2019.
23 - Delayed. According to NPCIL, the original scheduled dates for Commercial Operation for Rajasthan-7 & -8 were June andDecember 2016, respectively. As of June 2019, they are expected to be December 2020 and December 2021. See NPCIL, “Statusof Project under Construction—Rajasthan Atomic Power Project”, Undated, see https://www.npcil.nic.in/content/300_1_
RajasthanAtomicPowerProject.aspx, accessed 24 June 2019.
24 - Delayed. See previous note.
25 - Construction status unclear. Chugoku “took the first step” toward Shimane-3 startup by asking prefectural and local governments
for their consent on applying to the Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) for safety screening; see The Asahi Shimbun, “Process begins
at Shimane nuclear plant to operate new reactor”, 22 May 2018, see http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201805220043.html, accessed
22 May 2018. Still no clear date for startup.
26 - No information on possible delay. Expected start of operation, according to PNRA, “PNRA Annual Report 2018”, 2019,see https://www.pnra.org/upload/pnrarpt/PNRA%20Report%202018.pdf, accessed 15 May 2019.
27 - Ibidem.
28 - Rsatom, “Floating nuclear power plant The Akademik Lomonosov has received an operating license”, 28 June 2019,see https://www.rosatom.ru/en/press-centre/news/floating-nuclear-power-plant-the-akademik-lomonosov-has-received-an-operatinglicense-/, accessed 20 July 2019.
29 - Ibidem.
30 - WNA, “Nuclear Power in Russia”, April 2019, see http://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/country-profiles/countries-o-s/russia-nuclear-power9aspx, accessed 23 April 2019.
31 - Delayed several times. In 2018, TASS agency reported that Russia was ready to postpone ‘Commissioning of two Nuclear Plants’.
Commissioning of Leningrad 22, then planned for February 2020, would be postponed by two years. See NucNet, “Russia Ready
To Postpone Commissioning Of Two Nuclear Plants, Says Official Agency”, 5 February 2018, see https://www.nucnet.org/all-thenews/2018/02/05/russia-ready-to-postpone-commissioning-of-two-nuclear-plants-says-official-agency, accessed 7 February 2018.
However, the reactor might be commissioned in 2021. See Judith Perera, “What’s next for Leningrad?”, NEI, 2 May 2019, see https://www.neimagazine.com/features/featurewhats-next-for-leningrad-7183813/, accessed 1 July 2019.
32 - Delayed several times. Construction was suspended between March 1993 and June 2009. In the Framework of the Strategic Plan,approved by the extraordinary General Assembly of Slovenské Elektrárne, a.s. (SE) on 28 March 2017, operation of Mochovce3 was
expected by the end of 2018. In May 2019, CEO of SE Branislav Strycek announced that startup would be delayed again to March 2020,
an optimistic variant being November 2019. See TASR, “B. Strýček: Tretí blok elektrárne Mochovce spustíme najskôr v novembri”,
TERAZ.sk, 6 May 2019 (in Slovak), see http://www.teraz.sk/ekonomika/strycek-treti-blok-elektrarne-mocho/393763-clanok.html,
accessed 20 July 2019. A delay of at least one year compared to WNISR2018.
33 - Delayed several times. Construction was suspended between March 1993 and June 2009. In the Framework of the Strategic Plan,approved by the extraordinary General Assembly of Slovenské Elektrárne, a.s. (SE) on 28 March 2017, operation of Mochovce4 was
expected by the end of 2019. It is now expected in 2021. A delay of over a year compared to WNISR2018.
34 - Delayed several times. In January 2019, KHNP’s webpage dedicated to ShinHanul1 announced a change in Commercial Operation(November 2019), with fuel loading to take place in June 2019, which did not happen as of 1 July 2019. A delay of one year compared to
WNISR2018. KHNP, “Nuclear Power Construction—ShinHanul #1,2”, 1 January 2019, see http://cms.khnp.co.kr/eng/content/547/main.
do?mnCd=EN03020303, accessed 17 June 2019.
35 - Delayed several times. In January 2019, KHNP’s webpage dedicated to Shin-Hanul-2 announced a change in Commercial Operation(July 2020) a delay of around 10 months compared to WNISR2018. See previous note.
36 - Further delayed. Construction officially started in April 2017, suspended in July to resume in October of the same year.
Commercial operation at construction start was October 2021, it is now expected in March 2023, almost 1.5 year of delay.
KHNP, “Nuclear Power Construction—Shin‑Kori #5,6”, various dates, see http://cms.khnp.co.kr/eng/content/548/main.
do?mnCd=EN03020304, last accessed 10 August 2019.

| 322

Wo r l d N u c l e a r I n d u s t r y S t a t u s R e p o r t | 2 0 1 9 

37 - KHNP, “Nuclear Power Construction—Shin-Kori #5,6”, Various dates, see http://cms.khnp.co.kr/eng/content/548/main.
do?mnCd=EN03020304, last accessed 10 August 201938 - Delayed. In March 2019, the project management announced that it had finished the concreting of the basemat for the nuclear
island and that it was now expected that Akkuyu-1 would be physically completed in 2023, with generation coming at a later date. Phil
Chaffee, “New Build, Revised 2023 Milestone for Akkuyu”, NIW, 29 March 2019.
39 - Delayed several times. In May 2017, startup of Barakah-1 was first postponed to 2018. In May 2018, the reviewed forecast of its
operator, Nawah, after it had “completed a comprehensive operational readiness review to generate an updated schedule for the startup”, is that “the loading of nuclear fuel assemblies required to commence nuclear operations at Barakah Unit 1 will occur between theend of 2019 and early 2020”. See Nawah, “Next phase of preparations for Barakah Unit 1 Nuclear Operations starts”, 28 May 2018, Press
Release, see https://www.nawah.ae/media/press-news/2018/05/26/Next-phase-of-preparations-for-Barakah, accessed 26 July 2019. In
July 2019, FANR announced that “Unit 1 construction is complete and the unit is currently undergoing commissioning and testing,prior to receipt of the Operating License from FANR, which is currently in the final stages of reviewing the Operating License
application for the Unit, in preparation for the loading of the first nuclear assemblies”. See FANR, “FANR Certifies ENEC’s First groupof UAE National Nuclear Reactor Operators”, 8 July 2019, see https://www.fanr.gov.ae/en/media-centre/news?g=0b7fd437-2044-434690ef-76d8eaeb5c59, accessed 8 July 2019.
40 - Delayed. No new date for Barakah-2 in updated schedule (see previous note). WNA uses 2021, a three year delay compared tooriginal schedule. See WNA, “Nuclear Power in the United Arab Emirates”, April 2019, see http://www.world-nuclear.org/informationlibrary/country-profiles/countries-t-z/united-arab-emirates.aspx, accessed 17 April 2019.
41 - Delayed. No new date for Barakah-3 in updated schedule. WNA uses 2022, a three year delay compared to original schedule.
(See previous notes).
42 - Delayed. No new date for Barakah-4 in updated schedule. WNA uses 2023, a three year delay compared to original schedule.
(See previous notes).
43 - See WNISR, “The Oddly Discreet Construction Start of Hinkley Point C”, 29 December 2018, see https://www.worldnuclearreport.
org/The-Oddly-Discreet-Construction-Start-of-Hinkley-Point-C.html, accessed 24 August 2019.
44 - EDF, “Clarifications on Hinkley Point C project”, 3 July 2017, see https://www.edf.fr/en/the-edf-group/dedicated-sections/journalists/all-press-releases/clarifications-on-hinkley-point-c-project, accessed 7 May 2018.
45 - Delayed. Georgia Power is expressing confidence that it can meet target dates of November 2021 and November 2022 for Unit 3
and 4 respectively announced in 2018. Georgia Power, “Georgia Power’s Vogtle Unit 3 achieves Initial Energization”, Press Release,
7 May 2019, see https://southerncompany.mediaroom.com/2019-05-07-Georgia-Powers-Vogtle-Unit-3-achieves-Initial-Energization,accessed 20 July 2019. No change since WNISR2018.
46 - Delayed. No change since WNISR2018. (See previous note).

| 323